The Evil in Our Hearts
by SnapeIsMyEscape
Summary: Darkness has a powerful allure, even for the meekest of the nerds. All it took was a few sweet words - and the really hot body didn't hurt, either. ChaseXOC COMPLETE!
1. The Prophecy

Heyyyyy there! It is I, AML! Yes, This is going up here to let people know that I don't own Xiaolin Showdown, or any of that stuff. Sorry! . Chapter 1: The Beginning 

The Xiaolin Monks all groaned as the soccer ball went flying over the temple wall.

"Way to go, Rai." said Kimiko, annoyance etched on her face.

"Yes, that was most irresponsible of you," added Omi.

"Okay, guys, chill!" said Raimundo. "I'll go get it, don't freak!" And so, Raimundo hopped over the wall to go get the misplaced ball. "If I was a soccer ball, where would I be?" He asked himself, walking idly around. "I'd be…at the base of that tree!" Raimundo ran over to the tree in question, and picked the ball up. He then turned around, and proceeded to walk into someone. "Oh, sor-"

"_The time is coming…"_ Rasped the person. They had on a brown cloak, which was blowing slightly in the wind. The hood of the cloak was up, covering the person's head. Raimundo stepped back.

"What?" he asked, "Dude, I gotta-"

"_In a short time, a threat will reveal it self."_ The cloaked figure continued, _" It will be more powerful then all of your enemies combined. Be wary of this warning…the time is coming…"_ The person started fade, still whispering the message as they went.

"Wait!" Raimundo called reaching out for them, "The guys will never believe me!" But they where gone, and nothing was left of them but a piece of the brown cloak that Raimundo had grabbed, but that too, began to fade. Raimundo looked at his fist, now clenching air. Then, he turned around, and went back to the temple, trying to forget what he had just heard.

This concludes Chapter One.


	2. College Life

Hello, every one! I am terribly sorry for the lack of chapters, but I hope that this will satisfy your hunger for fanfiction. Enjoy my work! 

Chapter 2: College Life

I pushed my red hair out of my face, and bit my lip. I stared down at the picture I was drawing, a man with a thin face, and long, black hair. He was missing something….

"Hey, Thanos," whispered Tristessa over my shoulder, "Who's that? Your boyfriend?" Her voice was taunting.

"Shut up," I growled, covering the drawing with my arm. "It's nothing of your concern."

She sniggered, and said to her friends, "Thanos is so pitiful, she has to draw her boyfriends! I bet she sleeps with it at night!" Her friends laughed loudly. I clenched my fist.

"Shut up!" I said, turning to face her, boring my green eyes into her dark brown ones. She smirked at me, knowing I wouldn't hurt her, no matter how I threatened.

"Settle down, settle down!" cried Mrs.Tomoko. The classroom immediately fell silent as she walked in and placed her bag on the desk. "All right!" cried she, "Get out your books, and turn to page three hundred and ninety-four. You have the class period to do all of the problems on this page, to be graded as a test, to be handed in at the end of class. Begin." All of my classmates sighed, and slowly got their books out. I got my book out as well. I looked at the cover lovingly. _Calculus, _I thought, _the best form of math there is._ I opened to the assigned page, and set to work. I was finished within the first half hour. Then, I sat back, and thought. _I'm sooooooooooo bored. I wish that I had a good book…like Harry Potter…hmm… maybe I should do the next page as well…_ As I thought, there were restless sighs around me. _Maybe I should meditate…_I then closed my eyes and concentrated as hard as I could. I searched through my memories, my emotions. There was boredom, and…. Something else….

The bell rang. I blinked in confusion. Had it really taken that long for me to concentrate?

"Miss Thanos, is something wrong?" Mrs.Tomoko's voice broke through my thoughts as my peers sniggered.

"Oh! Yes, I'm fine."

"Well, I would suggest that you hand in your paper, and go to your next class."

"This was my last class of the day, miss." I said, handing my paper to her. She nodded. I went back to my desk and picked up my drawing. I then turned around and walked out of the classroom. I walked down the hallway to the front doors, pushing past the other students, who were hurrying to their classes. The sky outside was dark, and threatened rain. I walked out the doors towards a large oak tree. I dropped my pencil, which I had been carrying in my hand and leaned down to pick it up. I saw out of the corner of my eye something shiny. Upon further investigation, I saw that is was a large emerald. I picked it up and turned it over in my fingers.

"Odd…" I said to myself. "It looks like an emerald…"

"Hello," I turned around to see who had spoken. Upon first glance I saw three children. The only girl appeared to be Asian, One of the boys looked American, and the other Latino. "Hello, friend!" I looked down to see who had spoken, and saw a third child, with yellow skin and a giant, bald head.

"Uh…hello…." I said hesitantly.

"That thing you hold in your hand is a very precious item. May we please have it?"

"Oh? And what precious object would that be?" I asked, irritated that a kid was talking to me like I was three. The three children behind him looked somewhat nervous, but the bald one just smiled and explained.

"It's a shen gong wu." He said in a friendly manner. "A magical object that holds great power."

I rolled my eyes. "Uh huh…yeah…" At that moment, I heard a strange whirring noise, and looked up to the skies. A pale boy with red hair and eyeliner was using a strange contraption was floating down from the sky. "О мой бог," I muttered under my breath. The pale boy let out a laugh.

"Jack Spicer!" The bald kid exclaimed. He and his companions went into fighting stances. "Prepare for a most humiliating defeat!"

"Not this time Xiaolin losers!" Said the pale kid. "Jack bots-"

"There's no time for that!" said an almost translucent, purple floating thing, "Just get the Shen Gong Wu before-"

"Before what, Wuya?" Everyone's heads snapped to a man wearing bronze armor. His black hair, which was blowing in the wind, had a greenish tint to it. His eyes made me shiver. I never knew anyone's eyes could be yellow.

"Chase!" Wuya exclaimed.

"Chase Young!" This time, the Latino boy spoke. "What are you doing here?"

"I thought that I'd pop in and watch," he said, "I'm interested to see how well you've learned."

I was getting a little freaked out. They where going to fight? And then they expected me to hand over this "mystical" object? That never was going to happen.

"Excuse me." I said quietly. No one heard me. They just continued arguing. I was beginning to feel weird. There was a weird bubbly sensation in the pit of my stomach. Was it anger? "Excuse me!" I said loudly. All eyes snapped to me. "How am I supposed to know that you are telling the truth? What if it's just one big joke?" The feeling was getting stronger. " How do I know that Tristessa didn't put you up to this?"

"Oh, do not worry," said the bald one, "I know it might be hard for you to understand-"

I had had enough. "Now you're insulting my intelligence?! I've had a life time full of people doubting me, and now some little bald kid is too!" My brain was buzzing from the intensity of the words. "I'VE HAD ENOUGH!!" Suddenly, there was a gust of wind. Thunder rumbled in the distance.

"Okay, okay, chill!" Cried the Latino.

"I WILL NOT CHILL!! NO ONE UNDERSTANDS WHAT IT'S LIKE BEING PUT DOWN IN EVERY ASPECT OF LIFE!" Rain began to fall. "WHY DON'T YOU TRY BEING ME FOR A DAY? THEN YOU CAN SEE WHAT IT'S LIKE BEING LAUGHED AT!" I felt my feet leave the ground. I looked down and saw that I was at least ten feet in the air. But I didn't care. I was too angry. When I looked at the faces of the people around me, all shared the same emotion; fear.

End of Chapter 2

I would like to thank almostinsane. He was my first Reviewer! That chapter goes out to you! As for my other readers, please review!


	3. What Just Happened?

Chapter 3: What Just Happened?

Thunder rumbled, and lightning flashed. Rain fell harder then I had ever seen it fall. I could hardly hear any of it, for blood was pounding in my ears. I gasped for breath, and glared around at the strangely irritating people who caused all of this. A bolt of lightning flashed close by me, followed by a sickening crack. Something sharp fell by my leg, tearing the flesh. I let out a yelp of pain, and glanced down. The tree behind me had been split by the lightning!

Suddenly, I was overcome by fatigue. I slowly began to fall towards the ground, tears falling down my cheeks, partially from the pain, and partially from my frustration. I closed my eyes when my feet hit the ground, but my knees gave out and I collapsed. I felt the rain let up a little bit, but I didn't open my eyes. I could still fell their eyes on me, and all I wanted was to be home with a book. After a few minutes, the girl broke the silence.

"Uh…. What just happened?"

"I don't know…." drawled the burly boy with a heavy southern accent, " It all happened so quickly…." I then felt someone shaking me.

"Hey, miss!" It was the Latino, "Are you okay?" My eyes snapped opened open.

"Getawayfrome." I said thickly, slurring the words. All I wanted was to be alone, away from these strange, and potentially dangerous, people. He looked into my eyes, concern etched on his features.

"You're hurt," he said, gesturing toward the gash on my left calf.

"…. Oh yeah…." I groaned closing my eyes again, and jerking my leg away from his hand. "I think I'm…. Loosing blood fast."

He laughed softly. "Trust me, it's not that bad. I think," he hesitated for a second, "I think that you need to come with us."

My eyes snapped open again. "No…." I rasped, crawling back, away from the strange boy. "I'm not that bad. I think that I'll just go home." I tried to struggle to my feet, but my bad leg gave out and I fell back to the ground. My eyes moved wildly from side to side looking for a way to escape. But, of course, I was completely surrounded. _Damn._ I thought. _Why can't I have a free escape just once? Or why can't some guy from the police force see this and call for back up?_

"No need to worry, miss," said the southerner, "We don't bite. You'll be safe with us like a baby kangaroo in its mothers pouch."

I looked at him strangely. "You mean a joey." I said. "And, how do _I_ know that? I know absolutely nothing about you, aside from the fact that you could easily snap my back in half." I gestured to the other people, "How do I know that they're not the good guys?"

"Trust me, we're not," said the pale boy, Jack. "We're evil, through and through."

"Well," said Chase Young, "Most of us are." He cast an irritated look at Jack.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Jack whined, looking at Chase with puppy dog eyes, which caused everyone else to gag. "I'm evil! What about the time-"

"That was all me." Chase said, an amused smirk on his face.

"See?" asked the Latino, "They even admit that they're evil."

"Well, at least they're honest…."

All of the good guys eyes turned back to me. "So…." Started the girl, "Will you, you know…."

"Come with us?" Finished the bald kid.

I didn't know what to do. Should I go with them? Or should I stay here, and try to struggle homeward, and get a doctor's help? "I…. I guess so…."

"Excellent!" said the Latino, "Dojo! It's all right, you can come out now!"

"Thank you!" Cried an unknown voice, It was getting stuffy in here!" And out of the southerners pants crawled a green lizard.

"What in the name of God is that?" I cried, letting go of the Latino boy's hand, (he was trying to help me up,) and falling back on the ground.

The boy laughed. "Dojo's a dragon. He provides transportation for us."

I looked at the small dragon. "But, he's so small…."

"I'm small now," he said stretching, "But I won't be in a couple of seconds. Just hold on…." And then, he grew to a huge size that scared the living daylights out of me. He was ten sizes bigger then he started out.

"Oh my god!" I yelped, nearly falling over again.

"It's all right," said the southerner, "He won't hurt ya."

I held onto the boys shoulder and moved cautiously towards the huge monster, which stared at me intently.

"Here, Raimundo," said the burly boy, "I'll help her up." Riamundo moved out of the way and, despite me being a head taller then him, the southerner picked me up bridal style and jumped up onto the dragon's back. He put me down so that I was sitting sidesaddle. "There you go." He said, tipping his hat respectfully.

"Thanks…." I said as the others jumped us and joined us.

"Allow us to introduce ourselves." Said the bald kid, "I am Omi, the dragon of water."

"You guys are dragons, too?" I asked timidly.

"Not real dragons," said the girl with a laugh, "that's our status. I'm Kimiko, the dragon of fire."

"And I'm Clay, dragon of the earth."

"And I," said the Latino dramatically, "am Raimundo, the dragon of wind."

"It's good to meet all of you," I said as Dojo lifted off of the ground and we gained speed. _Maybe my life is finally turning around,_ I thought, _Maybe my life finally has a meaning. _I had the feeling that my life would never be the same.

And it never has been.

End Chapter 3 

Hey there people! I finally updated! I hope you're happy! YAY!

-AML-


	4. Explanations

Hey guys! I'm Trying to update now…. Aren't I sooooooooooo thoughtful? Giggle giggle giggle giggle giggle giggle! SNORT! Ahem So sorry….

**Chapter 4:Explanations**

We rode in silence for most of the ride, with the occasional whisper from one dragon to another. I was extremely tense even though I now knew that I was with friendly people, and the whispering didn't help. The wind blew my hair in and out of my face, and, not for the first time that day, I wished that I had a hair tie. Fortunately, the ride was brief, and we arrived within the same hour we had departed. Dojo made a quick decent, and Kimiko, Omi and Raimundo hopped off. Clay picked me up again, and then he jumped down as well.

"Well, here we are!" Cried Dojo as he shrank back to his small size, "Home sweet home!"

I looked around, and found myself gazing at one of the most gorgeous places I had ever been. There were old buildings with cement walls and roofs with blue shingles. It looked like something I had seen in a textbook once in my world history class. I think it was in fifth grade, and we were learning about China. _That's probably where we are now, _I thought, _China. Aren't I deductive! __Jesus Christ! I am so sick of those happy little annoying thoughts! Why can't I have normal, pessimistic thoughts, like other people?_ I gasped at that thought. Were the heck did that come from? Whose voice was that? It surely wasn't…. mine?

"I know, it's beautiful, isn't it?" sighed Kimiko. "I wish I had lived here all my life." At first, her statement confused me, but I then realized that she had taken my gasp as one of pleasant surprise instead of a horrific discovery. Yet, then again, it wasn't really horrific, was it?

"Yes," I said, trying to focus on the dragons and not my own twisted way of thinking. "This is the most beauteous place I've ever been to."

"Why, thank you." I turned quickly around and saw the new speaker was an aged man wearing a blue vest, a white shirt, and white pants. " Well, young monks were you successful in getting the Emerald of Restoration?"

The monks looked embarrassed. "Well," said Raimundo, "Actually, she has it."

All eyes turned to me once again. I looked at the emerald in my hand with curiosity. "So, what does this thing do?" I asked, turning it over in my hand.

"You mean, the young monks did not tell you?" asked the man. I shook my head. He looked at Raimundo, disappointed. "Riamundo, you brought her back here without telling her anything?"

Riamundo squirmed uncomfortably under the man's gaze. "She knows a little," he said quietly. "She knows who we are, and what a Shen Gong Wu is."

"Well, that's a start," said the man. He then turned back to me. "If you come with me, I will explain every thing."

"Um…. Okay…." I followed the man, and heard the monks follow me. He led me through more gardens, and then into one of the cement buildings to an office type room. He sat down behind a desk (that is not in the episodes, but it's there because **I** said so), and surveyed me with his blue eyes.

"So," he said, "Tell me how this all started."

_I thought __**I**__ was going to ask the questions, not this old man!_ I pushed the thought out of my head. "Well," I started, "I guess it all started earlier today, when I was in my calculus class. I had finished early, which is not uncommon for me, and was completely bored. So, I decided to meditate."

"You practice meditation?" The man asked conversationally.

I blushed. "Well, I'm not _good_ at it, and I hardly ever do it…. Mostly when I'm bored, such as in this case." He nodded, indicating that he understood. "I was just kind of remembering things, analyzing at my feelings. I came across an odd one, one that I hardly ever felt. It was odd. I guess I just got caught up in it, so I didn't realize how long I had been sitting there.

"I was broken out of my trance by my teacher. She asked if I was okay, and I told her I was fine. So I headed outside to go home. Near the big oak tree near the school, I dropped my pencil, so I leaned over to get it. Then, my eye saw this emerald, lying in the grass. I picked it up to examine it.

"Then, Omi came up to me and asked me for it, telling me it was a mystical object. I was skeptical, and I thought that this girl in my school, Tristessa, had put them up to making me look like a fool. So I stood my ground and didn't give it up. Then, a boy named Jack Spicer showed up and started demanding the emerald. He had a ghost named Wuya with him; at least I think that was her name.

"Then, some guy named Chase appeared, like, out of nowhere. At this point, I was freaking out. I had absolutely no idea what was going on. Then I kind of…. Spazzed out."

"You what?" the man asked, perplexed.

"She means that she went ballistic, and started yelling at us." Said Clay, somewhat amused.

"Oh," said the man. "Continue with the story,"

"I…." I started to fidget, not knowing if I should continue, for fear that I would be laughed at. I looked back at the monks behind me. Clay nodded, Riamundo gave me the thumbs up, Kimiko smiled encouragingly, and Omi looked off out the window, clearly more interested in something out there. Kimiko, who was next to him, nudged him in the head. He turned quickly and gave the thumbs up as well.

"Well, then something remarkable happened," I said, smiling and turning around. "I then started to float off of the ground, it started to rain harder than I had ever seen it rain, thunder rumbled and lightning flashed. It was unbelievable. But, then I was overwhelmed with fatigue, possibly from the gash on my leg."

"When did you get it?" he asked.

"Just today, by the tree branch that was struck by lightning."

The man sat there, staring at his hands, obviously thinking about something. He drew in a breath, and then asked, "Has that ever happened before?"

"What, the floating? No, never."

He sat and thought for a while longer, and then asked me another question. "Could you excuse the young monks and I for a moment?"

I nodded, and he stood up and gestured for the children to follow him. Once they had exited, he spoke to them. "Is all of this true?" he asked.

They all answered at once, all supporting my story. "Do you think she could be a Dragon, Master Fung?" asked Kimiko.

"Yeah, like one that you missed or something?" added Riamundo.

"No," said the man, presumably Master Fung. "There is no element matching the description of the power she gave. However," he said to calm the moans of the monks, "I do believe that I have heard of a power that she could have."

"What is it, Master?" asked Omi.

"The Power of Manipulation. It means she can control tangible things." He clarified for the monks, who had all said, "Huh?" at the same time

"Ohh! That sounds very powerful!" exclaimed Omi.

"It is, but it could also be potentially dangerous…."

_Did he say… Dangerous? Oh… I like the sound of that. Maybe I can give some well-deserved… revenge._

At that moment, the monks and Master Fung re-entered the room. Master Fung approached me somewhat cautiously.

"Forgive me," he said, "But, we don't know your name, or age."

"My name? Oh! Yes. My name is Adrienne Thanos, and I'm nineteen."

"Nineteen!" Cried Riamundo, "You don't look nineteen."

I smiled.

"Well, Adrienne, I think that you have a special talent. I think that you can manipulate objects at will. See that rock on my desk?" I nodded. "Try lifting up without touching it."

I nodded again, and focused as hard as I could on the small rock. I imagined it floating off of the desk. _Be the rock,_ I said to my self, _be the rock._ It didn't work. And I got frustrated I was ready to just give up. But then, it wiggled. My heart leapt. So did the rock. I turned and beamed at Master Fung, who looked moderately impressed.

"I think that we should talk."

He told me that I should seriously consider training to control my power. I agreed. But I wanted the best training possible, and I told him that I would consider his offer to train me, but I would look at other options as well. He said I was wise to do that. I, yet again, agreed.

Little did I know that Jack Spicer had used the Manchurian Musca and was listening to the whole thing, and then he went and told Wuya. But they were being listened to by one of Chase Young's birds, which went and related the whole thing to him.

So the race to get me was on. For good.


	5. Introductions and Potential Suitors

Introductions and Potential Suitors 

Blackness. I was surrounded by complete and utter darkness, unable to see anything. I knew that I was asleep because this was how I normally dreamt, these dreams only interrupted by the occasional nightmare of how my parents died. I didn't speak or move, but stood patiently, waiting to wake up and see what the world would throw at me today. I stood in the refreshing darkness a little while longer, recounting the events of the previous day. Taking the test. Being ridiculed. Meeting the Monks, and discovering my power. Being taken back to the temple, being asked to _join_ the temple. Feeling important for once in my life, instead of like a piece of slime in the gutter.

I soon awoke in the room that I was led to after my talk with Master Fung and the gash in my leg got medical attention. The Monks had asked me all sorts of questions about what I liked to do, and I gave them the best answers I could with my mind being elsewhere. They asked me where I was from, and I answered that I was born in Italy, but my parents moved us to Russia for my father's job. They then asked what my father did, to which I told them that he was an architect and he was asked to move to Russia to help design a vacation home for the president of Russia. The next question did not come as a surprise.

"Where are your parents now?" asked Omi.

I sighed. "My parents are both dead." I answered, looking him straight in the eyes. "They died when I was fourteen. I'm an orphan."

Omi looked up at me with understanding eyes. "I, too, am an orphan," he said, "My first memories are of the temple."

"It's good to know that I'm not alone," I said, smiling at him softly.

I asked them a question as well.

"What dose this Shen Gong Wu do?" I asked, holding up the Emerald of Restoration, which had been forgotten up until now.

"Oh, that?" Raimundo pointed to the emerald, "It changes situations back to the way they were. Only a few minutes after the situation in question happened."

I looked down at it, wondering how something so small could be so powerful.

They soon left, under the impression that I was tired, but I was more worried than tired. I couldn't stop thinking about the new voice that had been taking over my mind. Where had it come from? Why did it like the idea of revenge so much? _Maybe I'm not the one who likes revenge._The newer voice interjected.

_No! It is you! The real me thinks that the wicked shall receive their just reward when judgment day comes!_ My rational thought argued.

_How do you know that I'm not the real you? And this other voice is the imposter?_The voice said slyly.

_…I don't._

Then let me do the thinking. _I KNOW that I can make the best decision about whom you should train with.  
_  
_Well, I don't know._

_I'll tell you what._Said the voice, _I'll give you the night and all of tomorrow to think about it. But after that, I will expect a choice._   
  
_Okay_. I then looked at the mat on the floor and sighed. I knew that this would be an interesting night. I laid down on top of the covers, (I didn't sleep under them unless it was very cold. And I mean very cold; I did live in Russia after all,) and closed my eyes, trying to calm the storm of my mind. I must have lied awake for at least half an hour until I was on the brink of sleep, when I heard footsteps out side of the room. I silently cursed the nightwalker as my mind came out of its nearly dormant state to listen. The noise stopped as its owner lingered momentarily outside of my doorway, obviously peering in to make sure I was safe from dangers unknown to me. The nightwalker, content with the fact that I was safe and sound, continued their stroll, and, until the noise of their foot falls faded completely, held my senses captive.

After another half hour of restlessness, I drifted off to sleep, allowing my body to relax. As soon as I was surrounded by the blackness, I was completely helpless, thinking only of the darkness and how it flooded my mind, body, and soul. It soon felt like I was part of it, that I could flow with it, help it capture other souls and lead them to their own demise, which was my pleasure. I only wanted to float with my master and do it's bidding, not knowing or caring what I did. Eventually, to my discontent, I became aware that dawn was approaching, and I would soon be forced away from my savior. Not that I missed it when I was awake. I only thought of my troubles then, and had little time to reflect upon the moments I spent asleep.

I sighed and sat up, wondering if I was just supposed to venture out myself, or wait for one of the Monks to come get me. I decided to wait, not really wanting to stand up and walk around and risk the possibility of getting lost. I only had to wait for a few minuets until Raimundo popped into view in the hall.

"Oh, good, you're up." He said, smiling, "Did you sleep well?"

"I've had worse nights," I said, standing up.

He nodded. "I know what you mean," he smiled, moving into the room. "The first time I saw the mats, I asked Master Fung where the beds were."

I laughed and started towards the door. "I don't really mind, it's better then camping."

He nodded in agreement. "Are you hungry?" he asked, looking at me with his amazingly green eyes. 

"I don't remember a time when I'm not hungry. Not because I don't have food," I added, just in case he got the wrong message. "It's no matter how much I eat. Like most other teens nowadays, I suppose."

Once again, he nodded. "I know what you mean." He then gestured for me to follow him. "Come on," he said, "The others are looking forward to showing you how we train."

"What about food?" I asked, my stomach growling at the very mention of the word.

"That comes first," he laughed, "We couldn't train with out it." The rest of the walk there we spent talking about trivial things, such as sports, (Which I had little to say about; I never really watched sports,) the weather, (How about this weather, eh? I don't recall the sun being so bright!) and books, (Read any good books lately? Not really.) I was amazed that we went through three different subjects in less than a minute, but we did. The other Monks were already at the table when Raimundo and I arrived. They were eating quickly, and I could tell that they all were hungry no matter what they ate as well. Raimundo gestured for me to sit down, so I sank into a chair between his and Clay's.

"Good mornin', Adrienne." Clay said between chews.

"Good morning, all." I said regally. No matter who said good morning to me, I always insisted on greeting the group as a whole, to make them all feel important. At least, that's what I'd say to them. I mostly do it because I'm lazy.

"Eat up, Adrienne," said the Southerner, "We start trainin' in a little while."

"Those are some of my favorite words." I smiled and pulled some of the food towards me. _Start a conversation to find out more about them_. "So, Clay," I started on one of the rare pauses in his eating, "Where are you from? The US?"

"Yep. The good old US of A." He practically swelled with pride as he stated the name of the world power.

"Which state? Tennessee?"

"No! Texas!"

"I should have known," I said, "Sorry. I hope I didn't offend you or anything."

"It's all right, but I just don't see how you couldn't tell I was from Texas!" I smiled apologetically when I heard him mutter, "Tennessee indeed!"

"Kimiko, are you from Japan?" I quickly changed the subject.

"Yup, born and breed!" She said happily.

"Ah, it must be cool to live there. Have you been to Tokyo?"

"Of coarse! I lived in Tokyo!"

"Wow! That's so cool! Did you ever gone into Sunomata Castle? I've always wanted to."

"Oh, the one built by Hideyoshi Hashiba? Yeah, it was pretty cool."

"I bet! It looks like a pretty cool place to be."

"Hurry up and finish your food, kids! There's a Shen Gong Wu that just activated!" Dojo proclaimed, flourishing a scroll as he wiggled through the room and out the other door to the gardens.

There was an excited uproar from the Monks as they stood up from the table and left their food forgotten. I quickly shoved a few more morsels of food into my all ready full mouth as I followed the Dragons, real and warrior, outside. Dojo quickly super sized himself and the Monks hopped on. I stood by and looked up at them, wondering what I was supposed to do.

"Oh!" said Clay, "We almost forgot Adrienne." He extended his hand to me, offering me the leverage needed to climb on the behemoth. As soon as I was seated safely, Dojo, using his giant hands to push off of the ground, took flight, rising gracefully toward the heavens. I looked over the side and became a little frightened; the previous time I had been on Dojo I was too wrapped up in my own self-pity to really take in the fact that we were flying, and that I had a small fear of heights. But fear was soon forgotten when the beautiful view met my eyes. The trees so small on a never-ending valley, which elegantly held towns on her breast, keeping them tucked protectively behind hills, out of the way of angry storms from the throne of God.

"So, what Wu is it?" I was cleaved from my lyrical state by Raimundo's inquisition, to which Kimiko responded by taking the scroll out of Dojo's huge claw. The others and I looked over her shoulder at the scroll, where there was a picture of a man who was holding a small lantern in his hand.

"It's called The GuÄng Lantern. It supplies unlimited light to the holder." The man was suddenly surrounded by blackness, and was lost from view. But, after a moment, the man was surrounded by a small circle of light, and was triumphantly holding the lantern over his head. Kimiko looked up from the scroll, a disappointed frown on her face. "That'll be really helpful," she said sarcastically, closing the scroll.

"I think that there's something like that in Harry Potter," I said, frowning in concentration. "Yes! It was called The Hand of Glory. Draco Malfoy used it to see through this powder that made it nearly impossible to see."

The Monks looked at me with their eyebrows raised. I smiled sheepishly.

"Ignore that previous statement." I said quietly, so they could just barely here me over the rush of the air.

"Well, now we know how it could be helpful." Commented Raimundo, trying to make me look less like the nerd I was.

I smiled at him. He smiled back. The Monks started talking amongst them selves, and I looked back at the ground, but there was no longer the beautiful sight of the valley, but the ocean. My stomach gave an uncomfortable lurch, and I once again felt nervous.

"Hey, Adrienne." I looked up at Riamundo. "Are you ready to watch us kick Jack Spicer's butt?"

"Oh, sure." I said, "Are you always so confident that you'll kick his, er, butt?"

"Uh, yeah!" Kimiko interjected, "It's hard not to feel sorry for him! He is so weak."

"He's about as easy to defeat as a foul in a buckin' contest." Clay added. Everyone stared at Clay after his comment, and he threw his hands up in the air. "What do you want? I have no control over what I say! It's this retarded author, SnapeIsMyEscape!"

**"Oh, yeah, sure Clay, blame ME!"**

"Who said that?"

**"ME! THE 'RETARTED' AUTHOR!" **

"Where are you?"

**"Where the hell do you think?" **

"…….."

**"Gah, never mind. -Wiggles fingers- Good byyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyeeeeeeeeeeeee!" **

"No! Wait!" cried Kimiko, "I wanted to know if my hair could be purple!" No change occurred to Kimiko's hair, and it will never be purple. Ever. "Damn it!"

"Oh, well. I don't think that your hair would look good purple, anyway." Raimundo consoled Kimiko. Her eyes flashed dangerously.

"Yeah, well that stupid author better watch out," she said, shaking her fist toward the sky. The next moment, she stood up and jumped off of Dojo and plummeted toward the sea. "OH-MY-GOD! HELP ME!"

Clay was the first to react by pulling out the lasso-boa-boa. "Lasso-boa-boa!" He cried, swinging it around his head. The Shen Gong Wu did not react and Kimiko plunged to her death.

THE END!

SamuraiWarriorsTripleMGurl: YOU CAN'T END THE STORY! I'LL KILL YOU!

Me: Sigh Fine. I'm sorry, readers. I'm just sooooooooooo bored. I'll just rewind to the part with Clay's simile.

!DNE EHT

.htaed reh ot degnulp okimiK dna tcaer ton tcaer uw gnog nehs ehT .deah sih dnuora ti gnigniws ,deirc eH "!aob-aob-ossaLâ" .aob-aob-ossal eht tuo gnillup yb tcaer ot tsrif eht saw yalC.

"!EM PLEH !DOG-YM-HO" .aes eht drawot detemmulp dna ojoD fo ffo depmuj dna pu doots ehs ,tnemom txen ehT .yks eht drawot tsif reh gnikahs ,dias ehs ",tuo hctaw retteb rohtua diputs taht llew ,haeY"

.ylsuoregnad dehsalf seye reH .okimiK delosnoc odnumaiR ".yawyna ,elprup doog kool dluow riah ruoy taht kniht t'nod I .llew ,hO"

"!ti nmaD" .revE .elprup eb reven lliw ti dna ,riah s'okimiK ot derrucco egnahc oN "!elprup eb dluoc riah ym fi wonk ot detnaw I" , okimiK deirc "!tiaW !oN"

**"!eeeeeeeeeeeeeyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyb doog sregnif selggiW .dnim reven ,haGâ"  
**  
….. 

**"?kniht uoy od lleh eht erehW" **

"?uoy era erehWâ"

**"ROHTUA DETRATER EHT !EM" **

"?taht dias ohW"

**"!EM emalb ,yalC erus ,haey ,hO" **

"!epacsEyMsIepanS ,rohtua dedrater siht s'tI !yas I tahw revo lortnoc on evah I ?tnaw uoy od tahW" .ria eht ni pu sdnah sih werth eh dna ,tnemmoc sih retfa yalC ta derats enoyrevE .dedda yalC ".tsetnoc 'nikcub a ni luof a sa taefed ot ysae sa tuoba s'eH"

"He's about as easy to defeat as a foul in a buckin' contest." Clay added. Everyone stared at Clay after his comment, and he threw his hands up in the air. "What do you want? I have no control over what I say! It's this retarded author, SnapeIsMyEscape!"

Everyone waited for something to happen, but nothing did.

"That's weird." I said.

"What?" asked Raimundo.

"It feels like something should have happened just then."

"Okay kids! We're almost there!" Dojo cried, turning slightly to the left, then dipping down. I looked over the side or the dragon again and saw that we were now over land again, but not a lush valley like before, but a desert.

"Where are we?" I asked.

"We're over Australia." Answered Dojo, "Who knew that I would hide a shen gong wu here, of all places?"

"Come on! I don't see Spicer yet! Where is he?" Riamundo said, irritated.

"Why do you want him to come? You guys are Monks, Aren't you supposed to be peaceful?"

They just sat there and stared at me.

"Well, here we are!" Dojo said as we landed in the middle of the Australian outback. I covered my eyes with my hand and scanned the baron horizon.

"Well, where is the Shen Gong Wu?" I inquired squinting my eyes.

"It's here somewhere," said Dojo, transforming back to his normal size. 

"But, where?" asked Raimundo, also scanning the horizon. 

"Where do you sense it, Dojo?" Kimiko asked, squinting at the ground.

"Hm. I think it's over… There!" He pointed toward a huge rock sitting about a mile and a half away. 

"Well, come on then!" cried Clay, "Let's get this rodeo started!"

"I don't think it's wise to walk across the outback at midday." I said as the others began to walk, "It would take forever to get there, and the sun would be beating down on us from directly above. I think it would be better if, well, if he was up to it, if Dojo flew us there."

Everyone looked to Raimundo. "Well, I guess that that would be the safest thing to do." He said, rubbing the back of his neck with his hand.

Dojo sighed as he became large again. "Well, hop on." He said, lowering his back to an accessible level.

Everyone hopped on again, (I got help from Clay,) and we started off towards the rock formation. While we were flying, the Monks saw the outline of Jack Spicer flying towards us with his heli-pack.

"There's that varmint Spicer!" cried Clay, rubbing his hands in anticipation, but he paused in confusion saying, "Wait, what is that next to him?" The Monks and I watched curiously as a second, slightly smaller outline appeared next to him on the horizon.

"What, or _who_ is that?" asked Kimiko, shielding her eyes from the hot sun to get a better view.

"There's only way to find out," stated Omi, pointing his small hand forward at the odd sight. "Onward!"

We were there within the minute, and where just in time to see Jack, Wuya, and a strange girl, who hadn't been at my first introduction of these people, land, or, in Wuya's case, float at the height where I imagine her head would be if she had a body.

"Who's your girlfriend, Jack?" Kimiko used the same type of taunting voice that Tristessa had used with me. I mentally noted this.

"This is Amanda," said Jack proudly, "She is the most evil girl in the world! She's the smartest, too." He looked at her adoringly.

I, too, surveyed her. She looked to be about fifteen years old; her face still had some of the roundness from her youth, which without, she would have looked seventeen. She was wearing a light green tee shirt with a black rose off toward the lower right side. Her pants were blue jeans with rips in the knees, (which made me laugh to myself; I had seen these types of jeans on _all _of the kids in the US.) She also had boots with a high heel, but not too high, after all, she could walk in them.

"So these are the Monks you told me so much about, Jackie?" She asked in a sweet voice, observing us all with wide, blue eyes. "Well, it's nice to meet you all!" The next thing I knew, I was being pulled into a group hug by this strangely happy teenager.

"Hey! Get off!"

"Yeah, don't touch the merchandise!"

"Yes, please get off of me!"

"Eww! Amanda germs!"

Amanda pulled away, looking slightly hurt. "They are just as rude as you told me they were." She said, moving back to her place next to Jack.

"Will you two shut up and just get the Shen Gong Wu?" Wuya cut in, seething.

"Right! The Wu!" exclaimed Raimundo, returning to the search. For the next few minutes, that was all anyone did. But then, another guest showed up to our little search party.

"Looking for this?" Everyone froze, and then slowly turned toward a triumphant Chase Young, a smirk on his lips.

"Chase Young! What are you doing here?" Omi questioned the man, whose smirk grew wider at the question, giving him the air of, "Don't act like you don't know."

"Why, I'm doing the same thing you're doing here, young one. I'm competing for," He glanced over at me, "the apprenticeship of her."

"No one's competing for me," I said, more to my feet than the others.

"Really, now?" he asked in an amused tone. I kept my eyes glued at my feet. "Then, why do you think the Monks are so eager to show you how they fight?" I still didn't say anything, as I had just become very shy. "Look at people when they speak to you, girl."

"Don't talk to her like that! She isn't your apprentice!" Kimiko was quick to come to my defense.

I felt Chase's eyes on the back of my neck. "Yet." I glanced up at his haunting eyes when there was a sudden uproar from Wuya and the Monks as they all verbally assaulted Chase for his slander. The argument became more heated, and resulted in the Monks attacking Chase. He was not caught off guard, so the attacks bounced off of him like a fat man bounces off of the sidewalk when he trips, **(THAT'S what I call a simile!) **as he swiftly blocked their kicks and punches. I'm sure Wuya, too would have attacked if she had more then a floating head. After a while, the monks grew weary, and their attacks grew weaker, and eventually stopped all together. All excepting Omi flopped tiredly to the ground, while the young Monk made a weak attempt to punch Chase. It was blocked, and Omi slumped down to the ground as well.

I gazed in surprise as Chase smirked down at the Dragons, but I quickly looked down again when he redirected his eyes to me.

"You are giving me a lot to work with," he said, not trying to keep the triumphant edge out of his voice. There was a moment when nothing was said, and I wondered if he had left. But I then saw his feet, and I knew that he was standing right in front of me. The thought of him being so close to me frightened me, so my body tensed automatically. He grabbed my hand from my side, and I nearly died, knowing that my fear probably made his smirk grow wider. I clenched my eyes shut, not wanting to see what he was going to do. He placed something in my open palm and closed my hand over it, and then left it hanging there. The next thing I knew, the Monks where asking me if I was all right.

I carefully opened my eyes to see The GuÄng Lantern's handle in my clenched fist.

"Yeah," I said, looking curiously at the Shen Gong Wu, "I'm fine."

End Chapter 5

**Oh, thank God that chapter is over with! It took me **_**days **_**to write! ARGH!!!! A special thank you to SamuraiWarriorsTripleMGurl! Without her, there would be no backwards part! And ****InuTaiyoukaiGalOfDarkAndLight, thanks for reading through most of it.**** (MUWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!!!!!!!!)**

**-AML-**


	6. Dreaming Is No Fun Anymore

Dreaming Is No Fun Anymore 

When we arrived back at the temple, the mood was only slightly better than when we had left. After all, we _had_ gotten the Shen Gong Wu. But what got the Monks down was the fact that I didn't stand up for myself.

"Why didn't you tell him to leave you alone?" Kimiko inquired on the flight back.

"I- I don't know." I said, "There's just something about him that…that just…intimidates me." The monks exchanged looks. "I think it's his eyes." I said, more to myself than the others, "His creepy, yellow eyes."

"That may be," said Omi, "But you cannot let Chase Young know that. He will take advantage of any weakness."

"I realized that," I said, leaning forward so I was lying down on Dojo's back, "And that will have an effect on my decision."

The Monks said nothing more, but the mood was slightly better after that.

When Dojo landed in the same garden we had departed from, I slowly sat back up. Clay turned around and looked at me. I nodded in _acknowledgment of_ his unasked question, and he picked me up once again and hopped off of the dragon, who, after we were all off, shrank back to his normal size. 

"Whew! I'm bushed!" Clay proclaimed, "I'm about ready for a nap, myself."

"Me too," yawned Raimundo, stretching.

"Yeah, me too." Murmured Kimiko, rubbing her eyes.

"I, too, am ready to nap like a cat." Said Omi.

"You mean, take a cat nap," Raimundo corrected the smaller boy sleepily.

"Same difference." Exclaimed the later, drowsily.

"Hey, Adrienne," I looked to Raimundo, "Would you mind giving (he yawned) The GuÄng Lantern to Master Fung for us? We need to get some rest."

I nodded. "Sure, no problem."

"Thaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa (he yawned again,) aanks."

They had started to walk away when I thought of a problem. "Um, where could I find him?"

"He's probably in the meditation hall." Riamundo answered me as he continued walking.

"Right. Uh, where is that?"

"Dojo can show you."

"Yes indeed I can." The dragon said with a smile. "Follow me."

I nodded and followed the green lizard through the garden, into a building, through _another _garden, and stopped outside of yet another building.

"Here it is," he said told me, "Don't take too long in there, if he doesn't get his full hour of meditation, he gets cranky."

I nodded and walked into the Meditation Hall, a large room with an extremely high, windowed ceiling. I saw Master Fung's back, and knew that he was in full meditation. I knew that I shouldn't break him out of his trance, so I hovered near the door, not wanting to cause him to stir by treading noisily on the floor.

"Come in, young one." At first, I didn't know who had spoken, but I then realized that it was indeed Master Fung, so I walked in awe over to where he was seated.

"How did you know…"

"I could sense your Chi, that is how I knew you where there." He opened his eyes to look at me. "And I also sense that you are troubled. What is bothering you, young one?"

I hesitated, unsure if I should open up to this man. If I didn't, than he would _know_ that I was lying and he would either persist until I did tell him, or he would leave me alone, but if he left me alone, than he wouldn't trust me, and I have this whole thing about people not trusting me. His eyes invited me to go on, and I felt comfortable under his gaze, not at all like Chase's gaze, which was a combination of strangely frightening and enticing. I took a deep breath.

I decided on _half _of the truth. "Well," I started, "It's about… Chase Young."

He raised an eyebrow. "Oh?"

"There's just something about him that makes me quiver. I can't look him in the eye." I looked away from Master Fung's eyes in shame. "I let him walk all over me today, when we were getting The GuÄng Lantern. He got to it first, and then, when asked why he was there, he said that he was competing for my apprenticeship. I caused the Monks to pick a losing battle with him because I wouldn't, or _couldn't_, look him in the face. I was standing there, letting it happen, though I wouldn't have been able to anything about it, but I still feel responsible." I took in a deep breath, and looked at him to see his expression. He was sitting in the same position that he started in, and his face was blank, apart from a small frown.

"You say he had The GuÄng Lantern?" I nodded. "Then, why do I see it next to you?"

"He sort of… gave it to me." I said softly, looking away from the old man's face once more.

"He gave it to you?" He asked, clearly perplexed. I nodded once again. "That is very odd."

I sighed, and thought about what to say next. Should I go to the whole truth, or just keep the last part to myself? I looked at my hands, and weighed the possible outcomes. If I tell him that I think I have other feelings about the evil lord, he might a.) Laugh about it, b.) Kick me out of the temple, or c.) Look at me strangely and ask "What?" and then choose either a or b. So I decided to keep quiet, and hope that I never have to deal with this little development.

"Don't dwell on it, young one." Master Fung urged me, putting his hand on my shoulder. "I am sure that this will pass with time."

"I sure hope so." I sighed, looking at the wall, and, for a split second, I was sure that I saw those haunting yellow eyes staring at me. "I really, really hope so."

* * *

After I gave Master Fung the Shen Gong Wu, I turned down his offer to stay and meditate, and instead decided to walk around the Temple grounds. I walked through the many buildings and gardens until I reached the Temple wall. I looked at the cement separating me from the rest of the world and wondered what separated Chase's domain from the outside world. 

_You may soon find out._

_Not you again._ I thought as I mentally slapped myself on the forehead.

_What? I can't innocently comment?_ Objected the voice in a falsely sweet voice.

_I somehow I don't think that your comment was very 'innocent'. _ I retorted crossing my arms.

_Do you know what this reminds me of?_ The voice quickly changed the subject.

I sighed audibly. _What?_

_Crazy people._ The laughter of the messed up emotion ran through my brain, causing me to cover my ears automatically, which, as any intelligent person could tell you, made it worse.

_You know what you remind me of? A headache._

_Oooooooh. I'm sooooo offended. I might just go cry in a corner._

"Uh, Adrienne?"

"WHAT DO YOU WANT FROM ME?" I screamed as I spun around to face the unlucky victim of my balled up rage.

Omi staggered backwards, nearly tripping over his own feet. "I was just wondering if you where hungry." He said, a hint of fear in his voice.

I mentally slapped myself across the face. It felt like I really _was _going crazy. "I'm sorry, Omi." I said apologetically, giving him a small smile. "I'm just kind of tense after this morning."

"Oh, I understand." He said, smiling, "You were worried that I was Chase-"

"Yes," I said, cutting him off, "I was just worried that the one of the people who frightens me the most was standing right behind me."

He nodded. "Yes, I would be scared as well if I wasn't a Xiaolin Warrior."

I stared at him, slightly irked by the fact that he was acting egotistical.

"Well, to answer your question, I'm famished."

"Dinner is ready, if you'd like to eat."

I smiled at him and said, "I'll be there in a minute."

Omi smiled. "I shall make sure that there is food left for you."

"Thank you." He smiled once more before turning back toward the Temple.

I turned back around to face the wall, but this time, I sat down. I needed more time to think.

_Oh, God. I __**am**__ going crazy._

_What did I tell you? This is all-_

_Your fault?_

_No, it's the other voices fault._

_How? _I inquired, truly curious as to how it would respond.

_You've been thinking with it for too long. It's begging to get mixed up. But I, on the other hand-_

_You are a fresh way of thinking. _I finished, comprehension dawning on me. _So you really __**could**__ choose the better trainer for me._

_Exactly,_ It said, with something that sounded like relief in it's voice, _I knew that you'd see it my way._

_So, I guess that I should let you take over._

That would be prudent.

_Okay. Here it goes… Um, how exactly do I turn this voice off?_

_Leave that to me…_ It felt like something in my brain clicked off. _Ah, there we go. It's just you and me now, Adrienne._

"Um…. Yay?"

"Who are you talking to?"

I nearly jumped out of my skin when I heard that someone was behind me. I quickly turned around to see Jack Spicer, Amanda, and Wuya all staring at me, smirks on their faces.

"No one." I said, embarrassed.

"Then why did you say that?" Amanda asked, looking at me in curiosity.

"Say what?" I asked, confused.

"You know, 'Uh…. Yay?'"

"Oh, that," I said, realizing that I had indeed said that out loud. "I guess that I was just, talking to myself. You know how you do that sometimes? When you think you're _alone_?" I said, irritated. Then something dawned on me. These guys were from the _Heylin_ side, and, here they were, standing in the _Xiaolin_ Temple. "What are you doing here?" I asked, my body tensing.

"Oh, we were just in the neighborhood and decided to drop in…" Amanda said casually, putting all of her weight on her left leg.

"You know, to see how you were doing, after this morning…" Jack added. Wuya sighed.

"What we're doing here is to improve our chances of being picked." She said bluntly. I laughed.

"What could you possibly do with no one around to beat? The only way you could _potentially_ improve your chances would to beat the Monks _and_ Chase in the same sitting. And, somehow, I don't think that's feasible."

"Oh, so the kitten has claws?" Wuya said with a harsh laugh. "You weren't this aggressive with Chase Young."

I flinched at the sound of his name. "Yeah, well, he was more frightening than a disembodied floating _head_." I snarled at her. She swooped at me.

"If I had a body, then I'd summon a rock creature and watch it obliterate you!" She hissed. I laughed in her face.

"I'll believe it when I see it."

_That's right. Keep on a brave face. Just trust me, Adrienne. I won't let you down…_ Of course, I did trust it, it was my only way to think now, but, down in my heart, I was terrified. I had no idea if this would come back and bite me in the future. But I listened to my new instinct and kept on the painful sneer on my face.

"Adrienne! Are you okay?" I adjusted my eyes so I was looking through the translucent witch at Raimundo as he came running across the short span of grass to where three of us where standing, and one floating.

"I'm fine, Raimundo," I called, "I just ran into some trouble when I tried to come into dinner."

"We where just leaving," Said Jack nervously as he deployed his helipack, preparing to make a hasty retreat.

"Yup." Amanda copied Jack; he apparently had given her a helipack as well, so she could get around on her own.

When Raimundo reached my side, he glared at Wuya and said, "Aren't you going with them, you hag?"

Wuya glowered at the boy before reluctantly following her two companions to the sky.

Raimundo looked over at me after the Heylins were out of sight. "Are you sure you're okay?" he asked, clearly concerned.

"Yes. I'm fine." I said staring at the place where my unwelcome guests had disappeared into the dusk.

"Really? You have a creepy look on your face."

I than realized that I was still sneering, but I quickly converted it into a frown. "Oh, really?" I asked, my voice squeaky. "I didn't notice."

He smiled slightly, "Yeah, well, are you still hungry?"

My stomach rumbled. "Of coarse." I said, putting my hand on my abdomen, which was hurting faintly.

His smile grew a little. "Come on, then. We're havingribs tonight."

"Excellent." I said rubbing my hands together. "Let's go."

* * *

After a hearty dinner full of animated conversation, I declined an invitation from the Monks to go stargazing, saying that I needed to get rest after all of the days excitement. I bid them all a good night, and wandered down the same path Raimundo had led me down earlier in the day. 

"Ah, that was a good meal." I said to no one at all. I let out a small burp. "Excuse me."

"You're excused."

I emitted a small yelp of fear as I spun around to face an empty hallway. "Who-who sa-said th-th-that?" I stammered, looking about me wildly.

"Who do you think?" The unknown person mocked.

"Oh, please be a ghost, please be a ghost, please be a ghost, please be a ghost-"

"I'm not a ghost. In fact, I am very much real."

"Please, don't be who I think it is," I whispered, walking backwards into the wall. "Please don't be," I sank to the floor, "Chase," I brought my knees into my chest, "Young."

"The one and only." He said, evil mirth framing his voice.

I took in a shaking breath before inquiring, "Where are you?"

"I am everywhere, Adrienne," I shuddered when I heard him say my name, the way a torturer gets inside the victims mind by showing them what they are going to put them through before they execute it. "I'm apparently inside your mind, as well as everywhere you look."

"What do you mean?" I asked looking around, trying to find out where he was.

"Don't you know? Or do I have to spell it out for you?"

"Please, just tell me." I begged, all of my dignity lost, "I don't want to guess."

He released a malevolent chuckle. "This is a dream."

"What? A… Dream?" I let out a relived laugh. "Only a dream…"

"_Adrienne… Adrienne are you okay?"_

"Raimundo?" I asked, looking around in confusion.

"I'll see soon you in the real world, Adrienne Thanos."

* * *

My eyes fluttered open to see the worried faces of the Xiaolin Monks huddled around me.

"Oh thank goodness you're okay." Sighed Raimundo, "I was so worried."

"What happened?" I asked, sitting up and looking around.

"You passed out, partner." Clay said, looking at me apprehensively.

"And you where twitching and muttering stuff." Kimiko added.

"It was most curious." Omi commented, eyeing me strangely.

"Yeah, where you having a nightmare?" Raimundo beseeched me.

My insides turned to ice as I remembered my dream.

"… No, I was just… Talking to my parents." I lied, turning away from them.

For a moment, there was an uneasy silence, but then there was a comforting hand on my shoulder.

"Hey, it's okay." Clay said, his voice gentle. "I know that you miss 'em, but they're in God's hands now."

I sniffed as emotions that I hadn't felt in five years rushed back to me. Tears weld up in my eyes and I turned to smile at Clay. "I know, but… My parents and I where close. I could talk to them about anything, and I did. I just wish that they could help me now."

"Do you think that they'd help you choose who to train with?" Kimiko asked, her eyes bright.

"No, that's not what I'm talking about." As soon as the words where out of my mouth I regretted it.

Ah, way to go Adrienne. Now they're going to find out about- 

"Wait, what are you talking about?" Raimundo asked, perplexed.

_Tell them, uh… I don't know…_ I began to panic as I was caught in my words. The Monks continued to look at me curiously, and I wanted to melt into the floor. _Uhhhhhh. Fine. Just tell them about the nightmare, Mrs. Smarty-Pants._

"Okay… Well, the truth is…I really had a nightmare."

"HA!" cried Omi triumphantly, "I knew it! Nothing escapes my pointy mind!"

"Don't you mean 'sharp' mind, Omi?" Kimiko asked, exasperated.

"Whatever. Now, what where you talking about Adrienne? What was the nightmare about?"

I took in a shuddering breath, and remembered something Chase had said in the dream. _'I'm not a ghost. In fact, I am very much real.'_

"Well, it was about… a man."

"Well, that's a start." Clay said, nodding. "Do you know who?"

I buried my head in my knees and said the, _his_ name quietly, like them not hearing it would make it unreal.

"I'm sorry, didn't catch that." Clay said.

I took in another deep breath before standing, turning away, and saying louder, "Chase Young."

There was a collective gasp from all around me, so I winced and hung my head.

"I don't know what's wrong with me!" I said clenching my fists, "It's almost like he intoxicated my brain, keeping me from thinking about anything else! I've barley known the man for, what? A day? It's almost like he's haunting me!" Once again there was a hand on my shoulder, but I pulled away. "I just want it to end!" I once again heard his malevolent laughter fill my head. I sank down to the floor and put my head on my clenched fists. "GET OUT OF MY HEAD!" I screamed.

"That wasn't in your head, Adrienne." I looked up and there was another gasp as Chase Young appeared in front of us, complete with a smirk on his cold lips.

"Oh, God. Oh, my God. Please, not again." His yellow eyes bored into mine, making it impossible to look away.

"What are you doing here?" Raimundo spat as the young Monks came to my side protectively.

"I heard you talking about, me, and wanted to pay you a little visit." He said, his gaze never wavering. I melted a little, trying hard to look away from his stare, but he was now holding me captive.

"Why now? Why not tomorrow?" Kimiko asked him roughly.

"I promised Adrienne."

I gasped in surprise. The Monks gaped down at me, questioning this. "Y-you ne-never prom-promised me any-anything." I stammered, still trying to look away.

"Oh? What about, 'I'll see soon you in the real world?'" His eyes glowed as he quoted my dream.

My jaw dropped in pure horror. "How did you know that?" I gasped, struggling to stand up.

He once again laughed. "Because, I was _there_, Adrienne. Why else would you dream about me?"

"Because-"

_What are you doing, fool?_ My brain practically screamed, _Don't say another __**word**__ about why you would dream about him. That's our secret, remember?_

I shook my head vigorously. "It was more like a nightmare." I said in an attempt to insult him. He laughed loudly, causing me to cover my ears.

"I bet you enjoyed that little 'nightmare', didn't you?" He said, his smirk growing.

My stomach lurched. "No!" I said, scared that he had me all figured out. "Why would I?"

He laughed again, louder this time. "You're a nineteen year old girl, and you're asking me why you would enjoy dreaming about me?"

I narrowed my eyes. "You're a creep." I whispered, "A conceited little creep." At this point in our conversation, the Monks where in awe. I had just stood up for myself, which, to them, was like seeing an aurora.

Chase's smirk dwindled to a malicious scowl. "A creep, am I?" He growled, taking a threatening step towards me. I took a step back, scared out of my mind. I hadn't actually thought that my comment would piss him off this much. He suddenly smirked again, realizing that he once again had the upper hand. "So that's your weakness," he said quietly to me, "You're all bark, and no bite. And half of the time," His eyes laughed at me, "The bark isn't even there." He took another step, but this time the Monks reacted.

"Don't get any closer, Chase!" Raimundo growled, throwing his arm protectively in front of me.

"Not one step more, varmint." Clay stepped closer to me.

Chase's smirk grew wider. "I see you have fans." He sneered, "You're lucky that you have friends here, otherwise things would be very different."

I blushed for reasons unknown to the Monks, but Chase understood perfectly.

"I'm sure that I'll see you later." He said mostly to me, which made me blush a deeper scarlet. And with that, he was gone.

I was breathing heavily, and then, out of the blue, I started singing:

"Long lost words whisper slowly to me  
Still can't find what keeps me here  
When all this time I've been so hollow inside

I know you're still there...

Watching me; Wanting me;  
I can feel you pull me down  
Fearing you; Loathing you;  
I won't let you pull me down!"

"What was that?" Clay asked, amazed that I could sing after being attacked by Chase.

"It was 'Haunted' by Evanescence." Kimiko said, frowning, "But I think that the words where different."

"Oh, really?" I said, nervously, "I always thought that was how it went."

"Why did you start singing, anyway?" Raimundo asked.

"I was thinking about the situation, and that song popped into my head. Sorry if irritated you." I said holding up my hands in an apologetic manner.

"Not at all," Clay said, "You sing like a lark."

"Thank you, I was in a couple of plays, mostly as minor parts…"

"Well," Raimundo yawned, "I'm tiered. I'm going to go catch some Z's."

"I'm tiered as well," I said in agreement, stretching.

"Would you like someone to stay with you, just in case Chase comes back?" Clay asked me, his eyes drooping wearily.

"No, thanks. I don't think that he'll come back. If he does, I'll holler."

The Monks nodded, and then shuffled off to their rooms. I walked slowly into my compartment and plopped down on the mat, singing Haunted to myself.

"Long lost words whisper to me  
Still can't find what keeps me here  
When all this time I've been so hollow inside

(I know you're still there...)

Watching me; Wanting me;  
I can feel you pull me down  
Fearing you; Loving you;  
I won't let you pull me down!

Hunting you, I can smell you - Alive  
Your heart pounding in my head

Watching me; Wanting me;  
I can feel you pull me down  
Saving me; Raping me;  
Watching me...

Watching me; Wanting me;  
I can feel you pull me down  
Fearing you; Loving you;  
I won't let you pull me down."

Smiling to myself, I slipped into Chase filled dreams.

End Chapter 6

**Wow. I'm surprised at how that turned out. WoW. I don't own Haunted, Evanescence does. Review, for Adrienne's sake.**

**-AML-**


	7. The Mind Abandons Us

The Mind Abandons Us 

The room was dark except for a small candle on the floor near the center, giving off an unearthly glow. I could tell that the room was large by the small pool of light that was surrounding the light source; it was only a few feet around. I walked quickly toward it, now fearing what was in the dark. I had been in this room before, and I didn't like it. Always the same candle, but the candle was smaller this time from its use from the other nights I had been here. I sat down next to it, waiting for what I knew had to come.

"I see that you have returned," Chase's voice said from somewhere in the darkness; I had no idea where he was, or if he was even _in_ the room with me, but I stopped trying to pin point his location nights ago.

I said nothing; anytime I did he would just use it against me later in the waking world. I wanted him to leave me alone, so I could sleep in peace.

"Nothing you do here can stop me from coming, Adrienne." He said, as if he could read my thoughts. I gasped.

"How did you know that was what I was thinking?" I asked, trying to see through the black abyss that surrounded the candle and I.

He just laughed, not caring to explain. "I'll just keep coming until you do what you're supposed to do."

"Which is?" I asked, slightly nervous.

The candles flame flickered. "Join me."

"Why do you want me so badly? Am I so important that you have to invade my dreams?" I stood up as I asked him the question that had been burning in the back of my head for the last seven days.

The candles flame was extinguished and I felt hands on my shoulders.

"Who wouldn't want to have you on their side?" He whispered in my right ear, "You have a very powerful talent, Adrienne. And I intend to harvest it."

I was frozen with fear. He was _touching_ me. He had never done this before in the whole coarse that I had known him, except when he gave me The GuÄng Lantern, but that was my hand, not my shoulders. I gave an involuntary shudder. His hands moved down my arms, and I snapped out my state of shock.

"What are you doing?" I gasped, struggling to get away from his touch.

I felt him smirk. "Messing with your mind."

Hearing this, I redoubled my efforts to escape. I managed to break one arm free and pulled the other out of his grasp with its help. I stumbled forward, and tripped over the candle. I fell to the ground, but quickly rolled onto my back so he couldn't sneak up on me. I just barley made his figure as he loomed over me.

"There is nothing you can do." He said, "You're stuck with these dreams until you come to me."

"As in?" I asked him, not wanting to believe what he was saying.

"I won't leave you alone until you swear that you'll join me." I saw his eyes start to glow, making me shiver.

"What if I refuse?" I asked, far more boldly than I felt.

His eyes glowed more brightly. "Than you can say good bye to sleeping soundly ever again."

My mouth fell open in a silent gasp. I knew that he wasn't bluffing, either. I thought that he wouldn't come back after the first time, but then he did. I thought that that would be the last time, but he showed up the next night. And the next. And the next. He showed up every night of the week, making me toss and turn in my sleep. Making my stomach churn whenever he spoke. Driving me insane.

Tears rolled down my cheeks as I stared up at my captor, my tormenter. I could just see the smirk that never seemed to leave his lips in the glow of his eyes.

"What's wrong, Adrienne?" He asked, mockingly. "Don't know what to do?"

The tears continued to fell silently from my eyes as I looked away from him, unable to look at him any longer. His insane laughter kept the tears coming in abundance. I closed my eyes, wanting to die right then and there. I felt like I wasn't worth it, despite what he had told me before. It felt like I sat there cowering at his feet for an eternity. At long last, his laughter died away, and, thinking that the dream had ended, I opened my eyes, to find him still there, smirking down at me.

"The choice is yours, Adrienne," He said, his eyes glowing brighter. "I can keep this up until you die." As my eyes grew wide his grew brighter, lighting up the whole room. I shielded my eyes from the intense light, which grew so bright I closed my eyes and let out a small scream. Suddenly, the light was gone. I slowly opened my eyes and moved my arm from in front of my face.

I was back in my room, looking out into the hallway, sweating and breathing hard. I looked at the alarm clock next to my mat and saw that it was four in the morning. I flopped back down on the mat, exhausted.

"Why didn't you help me, brain?" I whispered to myself.

_I have no control when you're asleep, Adrienne. Then your subconscious takes over. _

I sighed. "I know," I said, sadly. "I just wish you didn't have to abandon me." I knew that I wouldn't go back to sleep, partially because I couldn't stand to see Chase again, and partially because I was wide-awake now. I stood up and padded past the other rooms, through the same hallway where I had my first nightmare. I walked out into the cool night air and situated myself against the wall. I put my head back so I looked up to the sky. I dragged my knees to my chest and encircled my arms around them.

Then I remembered the last thing he had said to me before the dream ended. _"I can keep this up until you die."_ Tears came to my eyes again, and I thought about the choices he had given me. Either join him, or dream of him for the rest of my days. There was another option as well: death. But I didn't want to die.

"Mommy." I whispered to the dark sky. "Mommy. I'm scared." Then I put my head in my knees, and cried my little heart out until the sun came up.

End Chapter 7


	8. Adrienne’s Choice

Adrienne's Choice 

"Should I, Raimundo? I don't know…"

The Latino smiled in assurance. "Yeah, Adrienne, it'll be okay. We won't let Chase hurt you. I promise." He told me sincerely.

My stomach lurched at the mention of _his_ name, but I nodded. It was during breakfast when Dojo came in and told us that there was a '9.5 Shen Gong Wu alert.' The Monks had been eating greedily, but I sat pushing a piece of scrambled egg around with my fork. They had quickly left their food abandoned, while I got up slowly and followed them out the door. It was then that I asked the question. Dojo super sized and the others all got on quickly. My leg had healed, so I scrambled on after them.

The whole time while we flew there, Kimiko kept shooting me these looks that could kill. I had no idea why, so I tapped Clay on the shoulder.

"Do you know why Kimiko is shooting daggers at me, Clay?" I inquired in a whisper.

Clay nodded and turned around to face me. "Well, Miss Adrienne," he said formally, "It appears that Kimiko's jealous."

I gaped at him. "What?" I whispered, looking at her, "Why?"

"Well, ever since you came, Raimundo's been paying you more attention then he is her. And, frankly, she isn't taking too kindly to it."

"What, does she think that I'm trying to steal him from her? Because I'm not." I said defensively.

"I think it's more him she's mad at then you." Clay informed me, "It would appear that he has a crush on you."

I sat there, completely aghast. "I can't help it if he likes me," I whispered fiercely, "It's not like I told him to."

Clay shrugged.

"Okay, kids. We're almost there." Dojo interrupted our conversation with his announcement.

"What Shen Gong Wu are we looking for, anyway?" Raimundo asked his flying companion. This time, Dojo opened the scroll in front of his eyes and squinted at it.

"It's called The Xù Diary. It can communicate things to people with out the user speaking and without others hearing what is being said. Kind of like The Mind Reader Conch in reverse. Pretty nifty, eh?"

The Monks agreed, but I became more nervous. That sounded like it come in handy for a certain Evil Prince…

"Adrienne, are you okay?" I looked up at Raimundo to see concern in his eyes. Over his shoulder I saw Kimiko, who was clearly wishing me an early, painful death.

"I'm fine, Raimundo," I told him curtly. He nodded, clearly not convinced. "Look, will you just stop worrying about me? I'm older than you are and can take this kind of stuff!" I snapped, hoping he caught the 'older than you' part. He flinched slightly, and I felt a pang of regret for him. "I'm sorry, Rai," I said, "It's just that, I didn't sleep vary well last night…"

"Yeah, I heard." He said, sympathetically. "Did you have another nightmare about Chase?"

I nodded, looking away. "This is the seventh night in a row." I sighed.

"Well, here we are." Said Dojo, landing in a lush green field.

"Okay, where is it?" I asked looking around, trying to forget my nighttime traumas.

"It's that-a-way." Dojo said pointing to the west.

"Well, let's go get it!" Omi exclaimed, starting off. Kimiko was first to follow, then Clay. Raimundo gestured for me to go in front of him, so I did.

_Let's hope he doesn't try to talk to us._ My brain muttered to me. I sighed in agreement.

"Hey, Adrienne, can I talk to you for a minute?" I instantly cursed my brain for jinxing it, and nodded to Raimundo. He came up next me so we were on the same level.

"What's up, Raimundo?" I asked him, keeping my eyes straight ahead of me.

"Well," he started nervously, "I was thinking about your situation with Chase, and I think I have a way to get him off your back."

I looked at him in surprise. "Oh?" I inquired.

"Well, maybe if you acted like we where together-"

"Wait, what?" I asked, "Are you asking me out?"

"Not in real life." He said quickly, blushing, "Just until this whole thing with Chase blows over."

I looked up to the front of the group to where Kimiko and Clay were talking in hushed tones. "What about Kimiko?" I asked, looking back him.

He looked at her for a second as well. "She'll be fine with it." He said, sounding positive.

I thought about it. _Could that really get Chase away from us? I don't know… I guess it could work…_

I smiled at him and said, "You've got yourself a date, Raimundo."

He positively grinned from ear to ear. "Great." He beamed. He held out his hand. "Shall we?" he asked.

"We shall." I said, taking his hand into my own. We walked up to the front of the group, hand in hand.

"Hey, guys,"Raimundo said, "Um, yeah, can you act like Adrienne and I are going out? It's part of my plan to get Chase off of her back."

His fellow Monks gaped at us in awe. Clay's expression read, "What the heck?" Omi's, "What's going on?" and Kimiko's, "I'm. Going. To. Kill. THEM!"

Clay was the first to speak. "Uhh, sure, if it'll help Adrienne." He said, taking his hat off and scratching his dirty blond hair.

Omi also agreed. Kimiko only grunted.

Raimundo smiled. "Excellent."

We continue to walk, and before long, we ran into Amanda, Jack, and Wuya, also looking for the Shen Gong Wu. We quickened our search, and I stayed near Raimundo the whole time, nervously waiting for Chase's arrival.

Raimundo gave my hand a squeeze. "Don't worry," he whispered to me, "He might not even come."

Oh how wrong he was. Right after the words were said, I saw the unmistakable outline of Chase Young growing larger on the horizon. My insides churned. I did not point it out to anyone, but watched his features appear as he came closer. And closer. And closer still. As he landed, I gave a frightened squeak and ran behind Raimundo. It felt strange relying on a sixteen-year-old boy to protect me, but I knew that I couldn't protect myself from this man.

"Hello to you too, Adrienne," He smirked at me. I shuddered.

"Leave her alone," Raimundo said, glaring at him, "No one scares my girl and gets away with it."

I blushed and stage whispered in his ear, "Stop it, you're embarrassing me Rai-bear."

The look on Chase's face was funny, then terrifying, and then blank in less then a second.

"What did you just say?" he asked, his voice not reflecting the same change that his face had. "Did you just say that she was your girl?"

Raimundo nodded and then looked over his shoulder at me. "Isn't that right, Shnooky?"

I looked into his eyes and sighed in content. "I only wish I had met him earlier. He's so good to me." I came up next to him and rested my head on his shoulder. "If only every man was like my Rai-bear. No one would ever get divorced." _Thank you acting classes._

Chase's face flickered from black to anger. "Is that your final answer, Adrienne?" He whispered, his eyes glared right through me.

I gulped. I realized that Raimundo and I had gone too far, and now _I _was going to pay for it later. I needed to keep the act up, for Raimundo's sake. If I backed out now, then Chase would surely annihilate him. "Yes, it is. I love Rai." I said in a voice far braver than what I felt.

The captor of my dream's eyes glinted dangerously. "Well, then, let's have a celebration." He whispered softly, "It just so happens that The Xù Diary is right over there." He gestured to a bush to his right, where no one had looked. "Why doesn't 'Rai-bear' go get it?"

I looked at Raimundo, who was glaring at Chase. "I guess I will." He said, his voice deadly calm. "Come on, Adrienne." He dragged me toward the bush, while whispering fiercely at me, "I don't want you to grab the Wu. I know that Chase is going to challenge me to a Showdown, and I don't want you in it."

"But, Raimundo," I whispered back, "He could kill you. If I go into a Showdown with him, he won't hurt me as much."

Raimundo shook his head. "I don't want you to get hurt at all." He whispered, looking through the foliage, "That's why I'm going and not you." As he parted back two of the branches, we saw the corner of a book. He looked over at me, his face grim. "Here goes nothing," he put his hand down in-between the leaves. As soon as he touched it, the book began to glow.

"Raimundo, I challenge you to a Xiaolin Showdown. I wager my Serpents tail against your GuÄng Lantern." Chase proclaimed, his voice laced with malice.

"I accept," Raimundo said boldly, "Name your game."

I suddenly got a very bad feeling in the pit of my stomach. I looked up to see Chase grinning maliciously. "The game is rescue mission. The first to save Adrienne wins."

There was an uproar from Clay and Omi, while Wuya laughed wickedly. My brain froze, and then screamed, _What the hell?!? DAMN IT CHASE, THIS IS WHAT RAIMUNDO WANTED TO- oh._

"I accept!" Raimundo cried, determination etched on his face.

"Let's go! Xiaolin Showdown!"

The whole meadow shook, and then began to change. Dirt slowly began to began to rise around me as Chase and Raimundo where moved backwards on a sort of conveyor belt of earth. I watched them, their faces set in determination, until there was a wall of dirt all around me. It stopped at about 7 feet in the air, and then it started to create a ceiling. I let out a scared squeak; I was claustrophobic. I scratched at the wall right in front of me. Some grains of dirt fell off, but there was another layer after that. I gasped as more dirt took the place of the fallen pieces. I looked up again just as the ceiling closed completely. Now, I had to wait in darkness for someone to come get me. Great.

-Meanwhile, Outside-

"GONG YI TANPAI!"

Chase started out by walking at a normal pace while Raimundo took off at a run. The boy knew that he had to work fast; Chase could easily get through the box with his Serpent's Tail and pick Adrienne up and take her out the other side.

Chase, on the other hand, liked watching the boy scramble to free the girl. He knew that The GuÄng Lantern would be of no use to him, so he could take it easy and walk slowly.

When Raimundo reached the box, he strained to hear any sound of Adrienne inside. "Adrienne!" He called.

"Raimundo? Is that you?" came the muffled reply. Raimundo sighed in relief.

"Don't worry, I'll get you out!"

"Hurry, Rai! It's dark, and I'm scared!" Raimundo started to look around the box for someway in. He pressed his hands at the base, the middle, and the top to no avail. He turned to see that Chase was almost there. He was so frustrated that he finally just punched the brown wall. To his surprise, a small hole formed around his fist. He caught a glimpse of Adrienne in the center of the vessel, her frightened green eyes turned to him, before the hole started to close. He suddenly remembered the lantern, so he pulled it out and threw it in to her.

"So you can see!" He yelled, just as the hole closed.

At that moment, Chase reached the dirt dwelling. He lazily pulled out the Serpent's Tail. "Serpent's Tail."

-Back in the Box-

"So you can see!" Raimundo cried as he threw The GuÄng Lantern in and the hole he had created disappeared.

"GuÄng Lantern!" I whispered. The lantern immediately lit, allowing me to see around me, not that there was much to see. I was slightly happier because Raimundo was winning, but by how much I didn't know. But I soon found out.

"Hello, Adrienne." I froze, my relief ebbing away. I turned slowly to see Chase Young, smirk in place.

I whimpered. _I guess that Raimundo didn't have that much of a lead._ I thought, sadly. He was standing over me once again.

"My, my, my. Doesn't _this_ little scene look familiar?" He asked, taping his finger on his chin in mock thought. "Oh, that's right. This is just like last night. But something's missing. Do you know what it is, Adrienne? No? Why, it's the complete darkness that you experianced. Now how do you suppose we fix this problem?" I opened my eyes wider and clutched the Shen Gong Wu into my chest. He leaned down, put his hand on the handle and yanked it out of my grasp. The room fell into darkness.

"Chase," I whispered, tears falling into my lap. "Please, just leave me alone."

He dropped his voice to a whisper as well. "I don't think you understand, Adrienne." I felt his hands from behind me again, pulling me so I was standing. "I _own_ you. You are mine, and until you realize that, I will invade your thoughts and dreams. And there's nothing you can do."

"Nothing?" I asked in a horse whisper, not even trying to deny the fact that he owned me.

"I think you know the answer to that." He murmured in my ear, his breath tickling the side of my face.

"What if I pledged my loyalty to you?" I breathed desperately, "My eternal, undying loyalty?"

He moved one of his hands down to my waist, but this time I didn't try to escape. "Now you're talking. Serpent's Tail!" The next moment I understood what The Serpent's Tail did; it made it so people could go through solid objects. Once we were outside, there was a flash and the meadow went back to its normal state. Chase still had a hold on my waist when he whispered to me, "You have two days to make up your mind, Adrienne. But at that point in time, I shall return and expect a decision." And with that, he disappeared.

"Adrienne!" Raimundo cried rushing over to me. "Adrienne, are you all right?"

I shook my head, tears still staining my face. "You promised you wouldn't let him hurt me, Raimundo." I whispered. I looked up at his face to see pain written there. "You promised."

End Chapter 8

Yes, I'm sorry that I completely messed up the chapter numbers, but my sister was giving me grief. I hope that this chapter wrenched your heartstrings.

-AML-


	9. It’s Time I Stop Denying

It's Time I Stop Denying

I don't really remember getting back to the Temple, except for being picked up by a pair of strong arms. The next thing I remember was opening my eyes with a voice in my ear.

_One day left, Adrienne_. I recognized the voice as Chase's, although I knew that he wasn't in the room with me. But I then remembered The Xù Diary, and came to the conclusion that that was what he had used. I looked over at the clock and saw that it was ten Am. I scrambled to my feet and rushed out the door. I found the Monks training out in one of the gardens.

"Oh, hey Adrienne," said Raimundo, somewhat shy. "Did you sleep well?"

"How long was I asleep?" I asked, ignoring his question.

"You were out for about a day," Clay said, looking over at me.

I let out a low curse and turned around and walked back to my room. "Oh, what-am-I-going-to-do? What-am-I-going-to-do? What-am-I-going-to-do? I only have a day to choose between life here, at the Temple, or life with Chase Young, the one person who makes me cry every night! This should be easy, but it's not! Brain! You said that you'd help me!"

_Oh, really? I don't recall…_ I groaned, going into a state of pure panic.

"Oh, Christ! Why can't this just be a bad dream? This has nearly broken me!" I sat down cross-legged on the mat and put my fingers on my temples. I hadn't been this stressed and agitated since I had my drivers test and Chemistry final on the same day.

I can't wait to come collect my prize… 

I whimpered. "Death is starting to look pretty appealing right now… Oh, who am I kidding? I couldn't kill myself!"

I'm counting the seconds until I get to come see you… 

"Oh, shut up!"

I spent the next four hours freaking out, with Chase occasionally giving me the number of seconds until he would come for my answer.

_72,ooo…_

"Don't you have anything better to do?" I shouted, despite the fact that I knew that he couldn't hear me.

Good God, you've never yelled at him before… 

"Well, he's never pissed me off this much before!" I stood up and paced my small room. "And since when have you cared?"

Ever since I took you over…

"Well, you know what? You seem awfully like my old way of thinking, to me!"

_71,940…_

I let out a pained wail and sat back down. "I can't do this anymore! I can't stand waiting! I'll make the choice tomorrow, but right now, I'm going to sleep."

Are you sure that's wise? What if he goes into your dream?

"Let him come! At least then he won't be counting off the seconds!" With that I closed my eyes and tried to force myself to sleep.

_71,880…_

I groaned and pulled the covers out from under me.

"Stop it!" I yelled as I threw the sheets across the room at the thin wall. "There has to be something you could be doing instead of driving me insane!"

-Scene Change-Chase's Citadel-

Chase smirked, because he knew that Adrienne would be going insane because he continued to tell her the number of seconds that were left until he came to collect her. He knew that she would choose him over those idiotic Monks. There was only one thing in the way of his complete domination over her: her free will. It somehow seemed different from the time they had first met. Then, she was a shy child whom he could easily mold to do his will. But now, she was slightly bolder, more resistant to him.

"That can be easily changed," He said to himself, rubbing his hands together. "I can easily use the girls fear as an advantage, as well as her," he scowled, "Boyfriend." The fact that she and Raimundo where building more intimate ties with each other disturbed him. But if that disturbed him, then the fact that that they had pet names for each other mortified him. He was unsure why Adrienne even liked Raimundo. He was three years younger than she, pompous, and he was, well, unintelligent. He had hardly tried to get inside the box where the girl was being held.

"The thing that puzzles me the most," He continued, "is why she hasn't tried harder to keep me away. Unless, of coarse, she enjoyed the dreams." He laughed to himself for his foolishness. Of coarse she liked the dreams! He could tell that she liked to be dominated, which was one of the reasons why she had let him come back and why The Dragon of Wind had stolen her heart, and not the softer willed Earth Dragon. He went back to the diary, which he had forgotten about in his thoughts. "Hmm, were was I?" He tapped the end of his ballpoint pen on the creamy paper. "Oh, that's right. 71,280" As soon as the writing was on the paper, it disappeared, as if it had sunken into the paper itself. He chuckled; he could have sworn he had heard the girl scream in aggravation from all the way here.

"What 'cha laughing at, Chase?" The Evil Prince grimaced when he heard the voice of Jack Spicer from behind him.

"What do you want, Spicer?" Chase asked, not bothering to turn around.

"I just wanted to show Amanda your evil lair." Jack said casually, looking over at his girlfriend, who was starry eyed.

"Oh, your house is beautiful! Never in all of my years did I ever think-"

"Who're you talking to, Chase?" Wuya interrupted the teen, eyeing The Xù Diary.

"Adrienne," he told her, putting the book down and standing up from the table he had been sitting at and turning to face the two teens and the witch. He was in his library; he found it to be more peaceful then his throne room, mostly because there was less cat traffic there and because people hardly ever got far enough to find him there.

"Ah, tormenting her more, eh?" said Jack with a laugh. "That is so cutting edge!"

"I think that it's a little mean," Amanda cut in. "I mean, she looked pretty upset the other day after the- mff!" Jack had thrown his hand over her mouth and smiled sheepishly at Chase.

"She doesn't mean it Chase," he said quickly, "She just, uh, forgot to take her meds today! AH!" He quickly pulled his hand away from Amanda's mouth. "She bit me!"

"I don't know what Jack's talking about, I don't take medication, and I'm as normal as can be, but I do like to bite people, especially if they have salty skin, is your skin salty Chase? Can I-"

"ENOUGH!" Chase said, holding his hand in front of the babbling youth. This, he soon found out, was a mistake. She took this as a sign to go ahead and bite his hand, which she did. She bit through his glove, she was biting so hard. "Spicer." Chase growled through clenched teeth. "Get her off of me. NOW!" Jack moved quickly to get his companion off of his evil hero.

"Come on, Amanda. You're embarrassing me in front of Chase!" He whined, pulling her shoulder. She quickly removed her teeth from the Dark Prince's hand.

"Am I?" she asked the pale teen, "I'm sorry, Jackie!" She hung her head in shame.

"Spicer, I recommend that you and your girlfriend get out of my sight before I decide to kill you both." Chase snarled, turning back around and picking up the diary.

"Ri-right. We'll be leaving now." Jack pulled Amanda's hand, trying to get her away from the very agitated Chase Young.

"Aw, but I barley got to see anything!" Amanda complained as Jack pulled her out of the room.

"Thank God they're gone," sighed Wuya. Chase cast an irritated look at the witch before sitting back down and opening the diary once more.

Chase looked at a clock on the wall and saw that five minutes had passed. "70,980," he muttered to himself as he wrote the number down.

-At the Xiaolin temple-

"I think that he's finally stopped," I said, my voice horse from screaming so much. "I think he's finally left me alo-"

_70,980…_

"Nope, never mind." I sat sadly down on my mat, not caring to scream or throw a fit any more. All I wanted was peace.

* * *

_There are only two hours left, Adrienne. Only two hours. _I sat up quickly and looked to the alarm clock. Eight O'clock Am on judgment day. I scrambled to my feet and took off down the hall to the dining area. I saw that the Monks were eating already. I stiffly took my normal seat between Raimundo and Clay.

"Good morning, Adrienne." Said Omi, clearly not noticing that something was wrong. I grunted.

"Is everything all right there, partner?" Clay asked, putting his fork down.

I started to nod, but changed my mind. "No," I sighed, my stomach hurting. "Guys, I have something to tell you." Everyone put his or her fork down to listen. "Well, you remember two days ago, when I was in the box with Chase?" Everyone nodded. "Well, I kind of, sort of… pledged my loyalty to him."

There was a thick silence as my words sunk in. But then;

"YOU WHAT?!?" It was Kimiko who regained enough of her composure to yell those words at the top of her lungs.

"I didn't actually do it," I said, my heart dropping. "I was only exploring the possibility. He said he wouldn't leave me alone unless I became his apprentice. And, ever since I asked, I haven't had nightmares, but he has been counting down the seconds until he came here for my answer with The Xù Diary."

"Let me get this straight," Raimundo said, still slightly dazed, "You swore your loyalty to him, and he let you come back here?"

"I didn't swear my loyalty… Well, I kind of did, but he let me come back here so I could make a final decision. Don't hate me, please. I was scared."

"That doesn't give you the right to say that you might join the most evil villain of all time, Adrienne." Kimiko cut in, clearly agitated.

I was beginning to feel abused. They weren't even trying to understand why I had said that I was going to join him.

"You don't understand," I said desperately. "I have no means of defense. You guys can fight and use Shen Gong Wu. He had me cornered in there, and it felt like Raimundo had been stopped by something, so Chase was my only way out! What would you have done?"

"I would've fought him with all of my might!" Cried Kimiko.

"And I was still trying to get in!" Raimundo said, angrily, "If you'd have hung in there for a little while longer-"

"I couldn't!" I yelled, "He took The GuÄng Lantern from me, I could hardly see anything, and he was holding me from behind!"

There was a pause, and then Raimundo asked, "He was holding you?"

"He had me by the shoulders. I couldn't do anything." I said, exasperated. "He had done that in one of my dreams as well, but then he started to move his hands down my arms."

Another silence. "So, he was coming on to you?" Clay inquired slowly.

"I don't know," I said, standing up and turning around. "He said he was messing with my mind. He also said that he-he-" tears began to stream down my face.

Clay patted my back comfortingly. "He what?" He asked gently.

I chocked back a wail and whispered, "He owned me."

"Oh, I'll get that no good varmint if it's the last thing I do!" Clay growled, punching his fist in his hand. "Doing that a lady with out her consent."

"As noble as that is, Dragon of Earth, there is one part our dear Adrienne left out."

_Aw crap_. And we all turned to see none other than the Evil Mastermind himself. An hour and a half early.

"Chase, what are you doing here an hour and a half early?" I asked him, stomach flipping wildly.

"I came early because I thought I'd save you some stress, after all of yesterday." He said, smirking. "And it appears it's a good thing I came. After all, we wouldn't want to leave the Monks with an unclear picture, now would we?"

"What do you mean, an unclear picture?" Raimundo spat, "There's nothing about it that's unclear! You violated her!"

"That, naïve young Monk, is not entirely true." He said calmly, giving me a look that explained what he meant.

My heart nearly stopped as I realized what he was going to say. "Chase," I whispered, "If you say that, I swear to God I will find someway to kill you."

He ignored me. "Why, it appears that our young friend Adrienne," his eyes glinted maliciously, "_enjoyed_ it."

There was a stunned silence all around the Temple as soon as the words had been uttered. After a moment, all eyes turned to me. I was standing open mouthed, trying not to scream, faint, or die.

"Is this true, Adrienne?" Omi asked, his eyebrows wrinkled in confusion.

I stood there, unable to move or think. I just stared open mouthed at Chase Young.

"What have you done?" I managed to whisper. "What in the name of God have you done?" Chase just stood there, not answering, just smirking at me, daring me to try to kill him. I took a step towards him.

"Adrienne!" Someone was shaking me from behind. "Adrienne! Snap out of it!" I shrugged the hands off of my shoulders and took a step toward Chase. The man who revealed my secret. I took another step.

"Adrienne, what are you doing?" Someone shouted from behind me. I could no longer make sense of the words that were being said, let alone tell who was screaming them at me. I took step closer.

"What have you done to me?" I rasped, taking another step.

"I've put you right where I want you." He said so that only I could hear him.

I stopped walking. "What?" I asked, shocked.

"Now is the time that you need to make your decision, Adrienne." He said, louder this time. "Do you choose the Monks," He paused and sneered at them, "or me?"

End Chapter 9.

**CLIFF HANGER! NENENENENENENENE! Please review!**

**-AML-**


	10. Snow White Queen

Snow White Queen 

I stared, completely mortified. Now I was even more conflicted then before! Why? Well, Chase just reviled my secret, the Monks probably hated me, but they were on the side of good. I was so confused.

"I don't have all day, Adrienne," Chase said, tapping his foot on the wooden floor, "Just choose me so I can get out of this hell hole."

I looked over to the Monks. They all looked worried. I guess they already knew that their chances were slim.

"I guess," I started, watching as they held their breath, "I should give you all one last appeal." The Monks breathed a sigh of relief while Chase just smirked. "Who wants to go first?"

A brief look was exchanged between Xiaolin and Heylin. "I guess we will." Said Raimundo, stepping forward. He looked into my eyes before starting. "Adrienne," He began, "I want you to know that I'm sorry for the way that I acted when I found out about you and Chase." He cast a sideways glare at the dark warrior. "But, I just wanted you to know, we won't hate you if you go with him. We'll still be here for you." There was a nod from the other Monks, even Kimiko, though hers wasn't as prompt as the others.

"Oh, Raimundo," I said putting the back of my hand on his cheek, "I wish I could believe you. But I know how it is. I know that if I leave with Chase today, then there will be feelings hurt, or in some cases," I glanced at Kimiko, "feelings assured. Don't try to sugar coat it for me." He nodded, tears coming to his eyes. "Don't cry," I said, pushing his chin up, "You don't need to shed tears over me." I leaned in and gave him a kiss on the cheek. He closed his eyes as a tear fell down and landed on the floor.

I turned to the others. "Good bye, Omi." I said, walking over to him, hugging him, "I'm going to miss your slang terms."

He looked down at the floor. "I guess I'll miss you too. I just wish that there was some other way, so you didn't need to be on the side of evil."

I gave him a small smile. "I do, too." I moved over to Clay. "Clay," I started out, "I want to thank you for understanding how I felt and for not getting to offended by me asking if you were from Tennessee."

"Think nothin' of it, Miss Adrienne." He said, tipping his hat "But I do wish that you could stay here with us."

I nodded, and turned to Kimiko. She stood, not looking at me, but at her fingernails. "Kimiko," I said, not at all disturbed by the fact that she thought I wouldn't talk to her. "I want you to know that I'm sorry. About everything. About pretending to be with Raimundo, and for kissing him just now. And I want you to know that you two look cute together."

She looked up at me. "Thank you," she said. "And I guess that I'm sorry for being jealous of you."

I smiled. "I don't see what you have to be jealous of."

I turned to Chase, who stood waiting for me. I sighed and walked slowly to him. He held his hand out, a gesture that made me shiver inside. I saw how his eyes stared hungrily at my hand as it moved toward his, and it felt even more like I was sealing my fate. I delicately placed my small hand in his bigger one. "You belong to me now, Adrienne Thanos."

I nodded sadly. "Let's just get out of here." I said, unable to take one last look at the Monks behind me.

"If you wish, Zhen." My eyes widened as he christened me with this new name. A _pet_ name. His grip on my hand got tighter and we where suddenly out of the room that I had sat down to meals in for the past eight days, leaving behind my friends. Some of the only friends I had ever had.

End Chapter 10.

**Yes, The Answer you have been waiting for was just revealed. I'm sorry about the shortness of this chapter, but I think to add more would ruin the moment. I'm also sorry about the bits with Raimundo, but you know, I just made him so cute, I couldn't pass it up. Thank you for reading this chapter.**

**-AML-**


	11. The Pain of Betrayal

The Pain of Betrayal 

The Monks stood in silence for what seemed like an eternity after Adrienne left. They could think of nothing to say or do to ease the pain that had gown in their hearts.

Raimundo stood in the same spot where he had received the kiss from his friend. Or, who he thought was his friend. The thought of her with Chase just made him want to scream. She was a good person, not at all like that evil, sadistic bastard. The thought brought tears to his eyes.

Omi was remembering the time he had first met the newest addition to the Heylin team. She had been so scared and naïve back then, somewhat like how she was now. But now she was stronger. Not physically, like he was, but emotionally. She had been through so much in her short eight-day stay, but she learned a lot from them, and they learned a little from her, too. He learned that girls can go through a lot despite the fact that they where lower on the social scale.

Clay wiped a tear away from his eye as he reflected the day she had first started having the nightmares. She kept a brave face the whole time Chase was there and hardly complained about her dreams. She was one of the bravest people he knew, all though she went to the Heylin side for personal matters.

Kimiko hardly thought about any of the past times with Adrienne; she mostly thought about her apology. It took a lot of guts to come up to her and admit that she had been wrong to pretend to out with the boy she'd liked ever since she'd met him. As she thought about the last part Adrienne had said to her she smiled. _You two look cute together._ She could still remember the chocked smile she'd given her as she said the words.

An eerie gust of wind blew through the dining hall, and all present could have sworn that they heard Adrienne say, _I'm sorry. Please don't hate me… There was nothing I could do…_ They knew that deep down in their hearts that they would never forget Adrienne Thanos, the nineteen-year-old girl who had touched their lives, but they could each feel the hatred begin to brew in their hearts, and they knew that someday soon, they would see her again, but the next time, they would be mortal enemies.

And they would show no mercy.

End Chapter 11.


	12. Emotional Issues

Emotional Issues

There was a bright flash, and I found myself in a beautiful room of stone. Waterfalls and statues of big cats accented the cool gray rock nicely. The ceiling was barley visible due to its height, while the staircase had several landings, apparently to help a person's accent or decent. On the first landing there were several archways, which was covered by stone, as if to protect the person standing there from falling rocks or the splash of water. The whole room had a turquoise hue to it, adding to its magnificence.

I got caught up in its beauty and forgot what had just happened to me and who I was with. I took a few steps forward, only to be stopped by someone's grip on my hand. I looked back to see that Chase still had my hand in his and was watching me intently.

"You live here?" I asked him in a hushed tone; I didn't want to ruin the tranquility of the area with my words.

"No," he said, pulling me back to him, "_we_ live here." The words sent uncomfortable shivers down my spine.

"What do you mean?" I asked, hoping that he'd say something like, 'You are going to be my apprentice, so you have to live here,' and not what I was thinking.

He only smirked.

_Wow. This is weird… Well, at least you don't have to worry about him stalking you anymore… Why are you drooling?_ It was then that I realized that I had been staring at him for the past minute. I blushed and quickly looked away.

I heard a sudden soft sound, the kind of noise you hear when someone is walking barefoot on linoleum. I looked up and saw a tiger walk out of the shadows. My heart stopped. "Ch-Chase?" I stuttered, "Why is there a tiger in here?"

"There is a tiger in here, young apprentice," he said, "Because I want it to be here."

I looked over at the big cat. It had situated itself a few feet away from us and was staring intently at Chase. I felt a little more at ease.

"Is that the only one you have?" I asked Chase, eyeing him nervously.

He let out a low laugh. "Oh, no. I have hundreds of them." He said, his eyes glinting malevolently.

"Hundreds?" I whispered, looking around nervously.

His smirk grew wider as he snapped his fingers. Suddenly, big cats appeared out of the shadows, some on the same level as me and Chase, and others on some of the statues jutting out from the walls. I let out a terrified whimper and moved closer to Chase.

"I shall now show you the rooms that you are allowed to go in." He said, moving toward the sea of cats. I didn't move, and when he felt our arms straighten out, he turned. "What is it?" He asked, slightly irritated.

"Are you sure it's safe to have all of these jungle cats?" I asked, nervously eyeing the predators.

He sighed in aggravation. "They will only attack on my command. Now come, before I command them to." I quickly got the point and rushed towards him. As we drew closer to the great beasts, they parted, giving us a small pathway. I kept my eyes pointed to the ground as we passed; I read somewhere that eye contact provokes great beasts such as these, and did not want to risk being ripped limb from limb. We soon reached the stairs and started up on them. It took about five minutes to reach the top of the vast stretch of area, and I was panting by the time we reached the top, where there was a short hallway.

"The first room you shall see is my throne room," Chase said, not at all effected by our climb. There were two large doors at the end of the hallway, both finely crafted. As we approached, the doors opened slowly, allowing me a glimpse of the room beyond. From what I could tell, it was a large room with a high ceiling, just like everywhere else in the Citadel. When we reached the doorway, I gasped yet again. There where candles floating around, giving the room a healthy glow, and a few stairs leading up to a chair with a high back, presumably the throne.

"This is… Amazing." I said, drinking in the beauty of the room. Chase smirked, moving closer to me.

"I'm glad you like it," He murmured, "But we can't dwell here for too long. There are other rooms we must see." We then moved on to see the meditation hall and the training hall, both magnificent within them selves. The next room was the library, which was filled with many books, all brimmed to the cover with knowledge unknown to the likes of any normal scholar. The last room that I saw was the room I liked the most. It was my bedroom.

When he first opened the door, I was surprised. There was a queen-sized bed, fitted with a lavender comforter, lavender pillows lacing the oaken headboard. The stone floor had a white carpet protecting it from the beds legs. The walls held several pictures of beautiful scene, such as a meadow in winter. The room was bigger than my old room, but the size didn't matter. What mattered was the fact that the bed was bigger then my old one, and that was a good thing. I rolled around in my sleep, and it was a miracle that I woke up on the mat every morning.

I took a step into the haven to make sure that I wasn't delusional or that the light was playing a trick on me, which it wasn't. I looked back at Chase. "Is this…?"

"Your room? Yes." He said, looking around at it lazily. "I hope it will suffice."

I turned back around, unsure if we were looking at the same room. "Of coarse it will. This room is two times bigger then what I'm used to!"

He smirked and then let go of my hand, letting it drop to my side. "You will need more clothes." He said, eying my outfit, a pair of jeans and a light blue shirt. "Do you have anything suitable at your old home?"

I nodded. "I think so."

"You will be escorted by two of my cats so you can go back there and can pick them up." I nodded again, but my heart fluttered. Two of his cats were going with me, to keep me safe from danger, or to keep me in line. Chase snapped, and two leopards appeared behind him. He turned around. "I will also expect to see you at dinner at seven o'clock. In the throne room. Don't be late, I hate waiting. Wear something semi-formal."

I was slightly taken aback by his demands, but quickly overcame my shock to say, "It's a date." I mentally slapped myself on the forehead.

_What the hell?_

Chase turned his head slightly so that I could see the smirk that my words had placed on his lips. "Quite." With that, he walked out of the room, leaving the two leopards and me alone.

* * *

I flopped down on my bed tiredly. "Oh my God. I never realized that I had so many clothes!" I panted, turning my head toward the pile of clothes next to the closed door. "I never knew I had five pairs of jeans, fifteen shirts, twenty pairs of socks, seven pairs of shoes, two dresses, and four skirts! Wow, I was somewhat spoiled, in the aspect of clothing, that is. That is… eighty-four thousand combinations I can wear! Whew! I never have to wear the same thing twice for a while! Not that I care…"

_Does doing math make you feel good?_ My brain asked me, _or are you trying to forget about your little, I can't believe I'm saying this, 'date' with Chase?_

I groaned. "Come on, I don't know why I said that! It just, sort of, slipped out." I sighed and rolled over onto my side. "It's not like you stopped me." My brain said nothing else as I looked at my watch. "Oh my God, it's six-thirty!" I leapt up off of my bed. "I need to find something to wear, and fast!" I rushed over to the pile of garments, searching for the perfect thing to wear. "No, that's too casual… This is too formal… Oh, I love these jeans, but they're too casual… Oh, what's wrong with me?" I threw my arms up in frustration. "I've never been this obsessed with what to wear in my life! Why should now be different?"

_Maybe because this time it's for Chase Young…_

"Argh! Shut up!" I growled, frustrated by the fact that the thought was right. "Just because you melt every time we see him-"

_I don't melt every time we see him! You do! You're just too much of a baby to admit it!_

"I'm so sick of these internal fights with you! Why can't we just get along?" I sighed as I continued to pull clothing out of the pile.

_Because you want to let our lives be ruined by the likes of that Heylin scum, while I want to help us get higher things in life!_

"Oh yeah? Like what?"

_I don't know… World domination?_

I paused before replying. "I had no idea that you wanted to rule the world."

_Well, yeah. There's a part in everyone that wants to rule the world_.

I resumed my search. "That may be, but why the world? Why not- Ah ha!" I pulled out of the pile a white shirt and a light purple skirt. "_Perfetto_!" I ignored the snide comments from my brain and slipped out of the clothes I was wearing and pulled on the new ones. I smoothed a few wrinkles out of the fabric before glancing at my watch. "Six fifty five. Whew! Five minutes to spare." I moved quickly to the door and pulled it open. "At least I won't be late."

_We wouldn't want to keep your 'date' waiting, now would we?_

I groaned inwardly but made no reply. I made my way quickly to the throne room, and upon reaching the doors, I smoothed myself over one last time before entering. In the middle of the floor there was a stretched table laden with all sorts of food. There was steak, both T-bone and Fillet Mignon. There were three different types of potatoes, sweet potatoes, baked potatoes and mashed potatoes. There was Yorkshire pudding, cream of crab soup in a bread bowl, lobster, ham, and several different types chicken, including rotisserie, fried, grilled, and barbecued. There was also a fair assortment of fruits and vegetables, such as asparagus, broccoli, green beans, rhubarb, cauliflower, and corn.

At the end of this buffet like table was my host for the evening, Chase Young. "I see that you're on time." He said, not looking up from a bowl of soup. "Good." I stood awkwardly near the door, unsure if I should go farther into the room, or if it was safer to remain near the door. "Are you going to eat, or just stand there and stare at the food?" I moved quickly and sat down in the chair across from his; the only other chair.

"This is some assortment of food you have here." I said, trying to slow my racing heart.

"I don't always have this much food," he said, finally looking at me. "But tonight is a special night."

_Oh-ho-ho! So the Heylin scum has some charm! This could get interesting._

"Shut up, shut up!" I muttered through gritted teeth.

"What was that?" Chase asked, his attention back to the soup.

"What was what?" I asked quickly, hoping to distract him.

"What did you just say?" He said, looking back up.

"'What was what?'" I said hopefully.

Chase sighed. "No, before that."

"Do you mean, 'This is some assortment of food you have here?'" I knew that this was probably going to tick him off, but I couldn't let him know that I had a 'second person' that was my brain.

"It was after that," He growled.

"I didn't say anything after that," I lied, trying my hardest not to sound urgent.

He sniffed at the air, as if he could smell the lie, but made no comment. I sighed inwardly, relieved that he didn't say anything.

We sat in silence for a while, with him eating his soup and me munching on various foods, finding them all delicious. I was working my way through a second helping of Fillet Mignon and Yorkshire pudding when he cleared his throat. I looked up, meeting his eyes involuntarily.

"So, Adrienne, tell me, why did you lie to me?" He asked, a hint of resentment in his voice.

My stomach gave a nervous lurch. "I don't recall ever lying to you, Chase." I said, my hands shaking slightly.

"Really?" He asked, eying my shaking hands, causing them to shake even more. "Then why are you nervous?"

He had me in a corner. "I'm just happy to be here?" I asked in my last pathetic attempt to defend myself.

_Judging the fact that his amused smirk is there, you just failed in your latest pitiful lie. Ha! Now for the fireworks! I do enjoy a good show._

"Why do you never shut up?" I groaned, throwing my hands in the air. There was a strangled noise from the other end of the table, so I looked down from the ceiling and across the table. Chase had apparently taken a sip of his soup at the same moment I had yelled at my brain, and, thinking that I was talking to him, choked on the liquid.

"What did you just say?" He sputtered angrily.

I was frozen with fear, but I somehow managed to get my mouth to work. It opened and closed, no sound coming out.

"Well?" He rumbled.

"I-I wa-wasn't t-t-talking abou-about y-you." I stammered, looking away from his angry eyes.

"Then whom _were_ you talking to?" He asked, his voice loosing some of its venom.

"Uh… I was talking to myself?" I said, hoping that he didn't think I was crazy.

"Hmm…" I felt an odd sensation take me over, wanting me to look up. As I did, I caught his eye again. They where pits of mystery, a mystery that I wanted to solve.

"Yep, just talking to myself." I said, hoping that he didn't notice that I was still shaking.

"Would you answer the question?" He asked, still irked. "Why did you lie to me about Raimundo?"

I breathed a small sigh of relief. "Oh, that." I said, still nervous. "Well, it was his idea-"

"That you went along with." Chase muttered.

"Yes, that I went along with." I admitted, despite the fact that it was obvious. "But it was for a good reason."

He raised an eyebrow. "Oh?"

"Well, he thought- I mean, we thought that if we pretended to date then- then you would-" I stammered, not really wanting to reveal why.

"What is it?" He growled, clearly irritated by the fact that I couldn't speak.

"We thought you'd leave me alone!" I said quickly. There was a silence that lingered between us for a couple of seconds, before he started to laugh. It was a loud raucous laughter, the kind that he had used before in my dreams. But this time, instead of cringing, I started to laugh too. Mine was a nervous giggle because I wasn't sure why I was laughing. I was just kind of intoxicated by it. I sat there and watched him, nervously waiting for him to stop and say something. I didn't have to wait long.

"You actually thought that you going out with The Dragon of the Wind would stop me from coming after I told you that I wouldn't leave you alone until you joined me?" He asked, the amused smirk back on his face.

"I wasn't thinking clearly," I said quickly, "I hadn't gotten to sleep enough and he was so adorable-" Chase's eyes glinted dangerously, "I mean, not like adorable like, 'Oh my God he's so hot,' more like, 'Oh it's so adorable because he thinks he's hot.' He was practically begging me anyway. I guess I knew that deep down inside it wouldn't work, but I guess that I wanted you to be jealous- not that you could be jealous of Raimundo, I mean your in a league of your own- but he was insistent. I was kind of doing him a favor." I took in a deep breath. During my monologue Chase's smirk had grown bigger.

"Do you generally do boys that kind of favor?" He asked, his eyes glinting.

"What do you mean?" I asked, slightly confused.

"I mean have you had a lot of boyfriends in the past?" He clarified.

"Oh… Well, not really." I said, looking away. "The only boyfriends I've ever had dated me mostly because they've been dared to."

"How do you know that?" He inquired.

"They've told me," I said, the horrible memories flooding back. "I'm apparently one of those untouchable girls. You know, one of the girls who no one could ever love because they're too ugly, too smart or too weird. I was a combination of the three."

"They told you this?" Chase asked, casually getting up from his chair.

"Oh yes. When I asked this one boy, Calix I think, why he was dumping me he said, 'Well Adrienne, you're a nice girl, but nothing can override the facts. You're too smart for your own good, you're kind of weird, I mean, who listens to The Rolling Stones anymore? Oh, and you're hair is ugly, too.' So, I stopped going out with people. I stopped listening to my grandparents tell me how 'pretty I was,' and my grades dropped. I went from a four-point-oh average to a three-point-one. But why does that matter? It doesn't, does it? You didn't bring me here so I could ramble about my past." The whole time I was talking Chase had been coming closer to where I was seated. "Why did you want to know, anyway?"

He had finally reached my side. He leaned in close to me and murmured, "I wanted to know if you'd be able to react to this." He closed the already small gap between us and put his lips on mine.

End Chapter 12

Please review!


	13. Troubles With the Mind

**There's kissing in this! EWWWW!!! Jk. Read on!**

Troubles With the Mind

My eyes where wide with shock as the thought continued to cross my mind: Chase Young is kissing you. _Kissing_ you. Kissing _you_. His lips were surprisingly soft, considering he was the evil Heylin man who had been haunting my dreams. I eventually felt compelled to kiss him back, but my brain interrupted me.

_Don't even think about it! Break the kiss! Break it right now!_ I quickly pulled away from Chase. His eyes opened slowly, and upon seeing the yellow tinge of his iris I blushed and looked away, unable to look him straight in his intriguing eyes.

"Chase," I whispered, "What are you doing?"

"Isn't that obvious?" He murmured, pushing my chin up with his hand, forcing me to look him in the eye.

"Yes…" I breathed, "But, why?"

He gave a small smirk. "Must you question it?" He asked, his breath caressing my face. He leaned back in, his hand keeping me from looking away. "I've been waiting to do this for a long time."

_What are you doing, fool? Stop him! _I ignored my screaming brain, which seemed softer than before.

His lips soon covered mine again and this time I was ready. I gave a shy movement with my lips, to which he replied with a bolder move. It was obvious he was in control, but I didn't mind. It wasn't like I really knew what to do. The kiss became a little more intense, but it didn't last long. There was a sudden loud bang followed by a scream of, "Why does that always happen to me?!?"

Chase quickly pulled away, looking ticked. "Spicer…" He growled, moving away from my chair. "Come, Adrienne," He said, turning away. "We have uninvited company."

I stood shakily up and followed him to the door leading to the entranceway. We walked quickly down the stairs to the landing with the cover, where Chase stopped in the shadows. I stopped just behind him. I saw Jack Spicer stagger into the room, followed closely by Amanda.

"What are you doing here, Spicer?" Chase barked, not caring to hide his evident anger.

"Oh, hi Chase!" The youth called. "Just thought we'd drop in. Whose that?" He had obviously noticed me.

"Where's Wuya?" Chase asked, ignoring the youth's question.

"She decided to stay back home," Amanda answered promptly, as if she'd been preparing the whole trip here just to say that.

"Yeah, but we thought we'd just come and vi-"

Chase cut him off. "Get out, Spicer before I let my jungle cats devour you."

"Right," said Jack, nervously eyeing the several cats that had come out of the shadows. "But, before we go, can you tell us who that is?" He said hopefully.

"This is Adrienne, Spicer. You've met her before." Chase said, pushing me forward so I was in the light.

"Wha? I thought she was at the-"

"OUT!" Chase roared, causing the two teens to jump.

"Come on, Jackie." Amanda said, pulling Jack from his place where he stood gawking at me. They scurried out the door, leaving Chase and I, with the exception of the jungle cats, alone again.

I stood in the light, looking down at the spot where Jack's delighted face had been just moments before.

I felt Chase's hands on my shoulders again. "Would you like to continue where we left off?" He whispered in my ear.

I felt my heart melt a little as he said the words, and I did want to continue to have the most magical night of my life, but I was unsure if I was ready to do _that_ again.

_Of _course _you aren't ready to kiss him again! I'll see __that you're never ready! __And further more-_ The voice got so quiet that I almost couldn't hear it. Chase hands began to move back and forth on my shoulders, making it nearly impossible to think.

"Mmmmkay," I breathed, my mind groggy. Chase moved around to the front of me, his left hand trailing along my collarbone until it reached my right shoulder. His hand passed over it until it came to my back, pushing me forward. His right hand moved to my face and cupped my cheek, while his eyes locked with mine. When we where inches away from each other, he stopped.

"Prepare your self, Adrienne," He whispered, his hand rubbing my back. "I've been waiting for this for a long time."

* * *

I opened my eyes the next morning to be greeted by dim room. I sat up slowly and stretched. Picking my watch up off of the nightstand, I noticed that it was six thirty. At first I was confused; it had been late when I had gone to sleep the night before, and I was used to waking at ten. But I then realized that I was being watched. I looked over to the other side of the bed to see a tiger sitting there. I let out a scream. The tiger jumped up to its paws and hissed, as if it was telling me to be quiet.

I quickly covered my mouth. It turned abruptly and walked out of the room. I stood up and looked after the big cat, curious as to why it would just walk out of here. I then remembered Chase's departing words to me last night.

"We must part for the night, young one. Tomorrow will be the first day of your training, and I want you in pristine condition. I shall expect you in the meditation hall at seven o'clock sharp. Don't be late."

I yawned and smiled at the same time. It had been a long time since someone had made me feel that important in one night. I closed the door for privacy and began to get dressed in comfortable clothes; a pair of sweatpants I hardly ever wore and a loose fitting shirt. I put my hair up, just in case we were doing some sort of physical activity. I put my watch on my left wrist, so I could keep track of the time.

I trudged over to the door, still yawning, my back and neck still a little stiff from the lack of movement. I pulled it open and moved slowly down the hall towards the meditation hall, some of the moments from last night playing over in my head.

* * *

_Chase and I were still in the same place we had been in when Jack and Amanda left, but I couldn't tell. It was as if it had been transformed into the most romantic place on earth. I tilted my head shyly so he could have better access to my mouth, to which he complied eagerly. My hands moved to his back, the cool armor feeling good against my hot palms. I could feel myself move backwards, but instead of being pulled away from Chase, he moved with me. My back was soon pressed against a hard surface, and Chase moved his hands from behind me so they were on the wall, boxing me in._

_My left hand moved up to the back of his head, pressing him more into me. I felt him smirk. I almost did, too. I opened my mouth, trying to get a breath of fresh air, somehow forgetting that I was kissing someone. He took this as an invitation to explore, so his mouth was soon open and his tongue was moving in. I didn't object, so he pressed it to mine, causing me to gasp at the roughness. He pulled back._

_"__What is it?" He murmured, looking somewhat disappointed._

_"__Nothing. I was just surprised. I'm sorry. I didn't mean for you to stop." I said softly, looking away in embarrassment. _

_His hand pushed my chin so I was facing him again. "Now is not the time to apologize, Adrienne." He whispered, looking deep into my eyes, "Just go with what you feel." His lips captured mine again and I was back to floating in the world of nothingness._

* * *

I smiled, hoping that I would be able to concentrate today.

End Chapter 13

**Ah, Young love. Get it? **_**Young**_** love? Chase's last name is Young, and Adrienne is young? HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!!!! HAAAHAHAHA!!! Ah ha? Ha ha ha? Oh, never mind.**

**-AML-**


	14. Let The Training Commence!

_Let The Training Commence!_

When I reached the Meditation hall, I checked my watch. Seven-oh-two. I was late. My heart pounded in my chest as I walked into the room. I saw Chase standing in the middle of the floor, hands behind his back, obviously waiting for me.

"You're late." He said bluntly.

I flinched slightly. "I'm sorry," I said, looking at the ground, "I-"

"There is no time for excuses, young one." Chase interrupted briskly, "We have much work to do."

I nodded, but felt slightly dejected. Last night he had been so nice, but now… he was treating me like he had been several nights ago.

"What we are going to start your training with is meditation." Chase started, dimming the lights with a snap.

I looked up. "Uh, Chase? I already know how to meditate." I said softly.

He raised an eyebrow. "All right then. Show me."

I was caught a little off guard by his command, but I quickly got over that fact and asked, "May I sit down?" He nodded wordlessly. I carefully sat on the rock floor and crossed my legs Indian style. I closed my eyes, despite the fact that I felt stupid.

_**Concentrate, Adrienne. Let your inner mind take hold…**_

I let out a gasp of surprise and opened my eyes. "What was that?" I asked, looking around nervously.

"What was what, Adrienne?" Chase asked calmly.

"That voice…didn't you hear it?" I instantly regretted asking that. I knew that the voice was in my head, but it seemed I couldn't pass up the chance to make myself look insane.

Chase's face was cryptic as usual. "I heard no voice." He said. For a moment, I could have sworn that his eye had glinted, but, in my current condition, I couldn't trust anything.

I reluctantly closed my eyes again.

_**Let all thoughts disappear. Only let my voice in. I can help you master this…**_ I tried to shake the voice out of my head, but that only made it more insistent. _**Don't try to block me out, Adrienne. It will only make it harder. **_There was a slight pause. _**That other voice was bad for you, you know.**_

"What makes you say that, Chase?" I murmured, not bothering to open my eyes. I hoped that it wasn't his voice I was hearing, but it was almost as if I already knew that it was him.

"It only impaired your learning." He answered from beyond the darkness. "And you just proved it."

This comment made me open my eyes. "How so?" I asked, slightly frightened by the fact that Chase was indeed going into my thoughts.

He smirked. "You would still be baffled as to who the voice was. But you caught on in record time."

I slowly stood up. "Why is it that I can't have a normal thought anymore?" I asked, the question not really directed at him. "Now it's either you or some crazy thing bent on world domination."

"What makes you think that I'm not bent on world domination?" Chase asked, moving closer to me.

"I don't doubt it," I answered, "But the other thing wanted world domination for me, not you. In fact, it's probably disgusted with me right now."

Chase chuckled softly. "Oh, how naïve you are young one. Do you think that I would leave you with that abomination?"

"I was actually hoping so." I said softly, looking away from Chase. "At least that way I would have a little control."

"Don't worry, young one. I'm sure that you will grow accustomed to having my voice there. You still have your free will." Chase almost seemed to care as he said the words, and that really made me concerned. It wasn't like him to do that… But, I really had no idea what was like him, having only met him a short while ago. I pushed my anxiety out of my mind.

-------------

It was all going according to plan. Adrienne was just innocent enough that she hardly even protested Chase's sudden intrusion into her mind. She still had no idea of what was in store for her. And that was just what Chase wanted. As soon as she was trained, he would unleash her on the Monks and leave her to take them out of the picture. He would particularly enjoy watching Raimundo's face screw up into shock when Adrienne stood over him, ready to deliver the final blow to the young warrior. Chase could almost hear him scream in agony as the girl he couldn't have destroyed him, leaving him last in the line of three Monks who would receive their deaths early. One Monk would remain standing, and no one needed to guess who.

The Heylin Prince would give Omi the chance to join he and Adrienne, and if he refused, then he too would crumple to the ground, unable to deny Chase anymore, unable to hear the terrified squeals that, if he had joined Chase, would have pained him so. And Adrienne would enjoy tearing the Monks, young and old, into tiny pieces. Oh how she would love to murder. She would love to do Chase's bidding and live for the screams of agony that she produced from people. So soon… His dream was becoming a reality in a short time. Adrienne was catching on to meditation quickly; it was almost like she was made for the soul purpose of listening to him. The days whizzed by as they spent many hours meditating, and then later in the evening they would share dinner.

Adrienne was becoming attached to Chase. She always sought his opinion in everything she did. Chase gave it to her, just so he could see her carry it out, for every time she did, the dream came closer. He would give her the attention she had come to love in the evening; he found that when he made her feel important she was more inclined to listen. He hardly ever showed this compassion in the day light hours, however. He didn't want to mix work and play together as to avoid the catastrophic results.

As horrible as it may sound, he did think of the evenings as play. His only purpose for giving the girl that kind of attention was for his own selfish reasons, reasons better left unsaid. That, my friends, shall be revealed in good time, but for now, I shall leave you to wallow in your thoughts, to muddle this all over. I bid you all a good day.

End Chapter 14.


	15. A Walk Down Memory Lane

A Walk Down Memory Lane 

I stood and focused, eyes open, on clearing my mind. This was the one I had the most trouble with, I could do it perfectly with my eyes closed, and seated I was swift as well. In both of those, I could go into a meditative state in a second. But standing with my eyes open, it took me ten. Right now I was trying to break that record, cut it down to at least nine. All thoughts drained out of my head and I was quickly able to concentrate.

"Ready!" I called out to Chase, "How'd I do this time?"

He stood behind me, so I couldn't see his expression that would be able to clue me in to if I did better or worse than last time. "Ten seconds." He said, sounding slightly disappointed.

I let out a frustrated sigh. "Why is this so hard for me?" I asked desperately. "I'm not even facing you!"

"Not to worry, Adrienne." Chase said, his voice getting closer. "You've already made much progress today alone. We can not rush things." He stopped just behind me and put his hands on my shoulders. "And I have a little treat for you."

I was suddenly excited. I hardly ever got surprises. "What is it?" I asked eagerly.

"A Shen Gong Wu has just revealed itself and I thought that we could go show off to the Monks how good you've gotten."

"But, Chase," I said nervously, "I've hardly practiced using my powers. What if I'm attacked and I can't get them to work?"

"This is why you can't meditate with your eyes open yet." He said, making me feel ashamed. "You need to believe in yourself."

I hesitated, letting the reassuring movement of his hands calm me. "Okay." I sighed, stretching into his hands, "Let's go kick some Xiaolin butt!"

The Monks sat at the table for lunch, each digging in hungrily. They had been training hard since daybreak and each of them thoroughly deserved the food that they now ate.

"Ah, that hit the spot!" Sighed Clay as the food on his plate ran out. "Time for a second helpin'!"

"I'm afraid that'll have to wait." Dojo said slithering into the room. "A new Shen Gong Wu just went active!"

"Sweet!" Cried Raimundo, "Lets go get it!" All of the Monks finished their last morsels of food quickly and hurried outside to where Dojo was waiting. They all hopped onto the dragon and he took off, leaving the uneaten food to be cleaned up by them later.

"So, what's the Wu?" Raimundo asked the dragon, who opened the scroll to look and find out.

"It's called the Miànjù De Duō Liàn. I know it sounds confusing, but it pretty much translates to 'The Mask of Many Faces.'" Dojo said in response to the Monks confused reactions.

"So, what does it do?" Kimiko asked, looking at the scroll over Dojo's head.

"Well, it pretty much changes you into another person. But when you do, the other person turns into you, to confuse your enemies."

"Oh, that sounds most useful!" Omi exclaimed. "Let us get there before the forces of evil do!"

"And that should be easy considering we're only up against Jack." Kimiko added.

"You're forgetin' Amanda." Clay said as Dojo landed in a clearing in the middle of a vast forest. "I have no idea how you could forgit Amanda."

"Yeah, she's so weird." Raimundo added.

"Yeah, well, Kimiko's hair is ugly!" The heads of the Xiaolin turned to see a very angry Amanda, Jack just behind her in the cloudless afternoon sky.

"MY HAIR IS NOT UGLY!" Kimiko fumed at the teen, who showed no fear despite her partner's whimpering.

"And Raimundo is too pompous to notice that Kimiko's hair is ugly, and Omi is too naïve to understand the gravity of my words, and Clay is-" Amanda paused and looked over at the Earth Dragon, who sat calmly waiting to hear what she had to say. "Clay is a good cowboy."

"Thank you kindly," Clay said tipping his hat.

"Much obliged!" Amanda returned, nodding her head. "I could never insult a fellow Texan."

"Wait, you're from Texas?" Raimundo asked, his emerald eyes wide with surprise.

"No," Amanda said sadly, "But I wish I was. I'm really from-"

"I hate to interrupt such a stirring conversation," A cold voice was carried across the breeze to meet the ears of all those present, causing them to turn in shock, "But I do believe that there is a Shen Gong Wu to retrieve. Unless, of course, this is some sort of outing and I came to the wrong place to find the Shen Gong Wu."

There was a short pause before Omi broke through with: "Chase Young! What are you doing here?" The Monks, Jack, Amanda, and Wuya all groaned, while Chase just smirked.

"While I'm not really interested in Shen Gong Wu I did come here for a purpose other than to watch you triumph over Spicer." There was an amused snicker from the Xiaolin side and an outraged "Hey!" from both Amanda and Jack. "I think that it might interest you to know, young Monks, that I brought an old friend of yours here with me." He paused slightly, as if to add a more dramatic effect. "Adrienne, show yourself."

Out of the trees behind him came a dark streak. It flew up into the sky and hovered for a moment before descending quickly yet gracefully to the earth. There, before the Monks, was Adrienne Thanos, or what they assumed to be Adrienne. Her red hair had grown longer; what had used to stop at her shoulders now went down to her upper back, though this wasn't much longer, it still gave her a different aura. And instead of her normal pastel wardrobe, she had on dark purple, which really contrasted to her green eyes nicely. Her face had a cold smirk that didn't suit her.

"A- Adrienne?" Riamundo asked, his voice soft. He could hardly believe that he was seeing her again, so soon after she left…that she was wearing the same sort of look that Chase wore.

She observed the Monks coolly. "Hello, Raimundo." She said, eyeing him with slight distaste. "It's been a long time. How long has it been? Four months?" She let out a small laugh; a cold laugh. "Oh, how time flies when one's having," she glanced back at Chase as she smirked, "fun."

Raimundo's eyes flared at the word.

"What's wrong 'Rai-bear?' Cat got your tongue?"

"Wow, that's one of the best taunts ever!" Jack squealed, looking at Adrienne in admiration. "I like new Adrienne way better than old Adrienne!"

Raimundo's eyes explained everything that he felt; pain, anger, sadness. Adrienne's face flickered from smugness to concern, but as quickly as the change happened her face was back to the coldness and she let out a laugh.

"Ah, Raimundo, you're so weak." She laughed as Raimundo glared at a spot behind her, unable to look her in the eyes. "Look at people when they speak to you."

There was a stunned silence as her words sunk in. All eyes were either on Adrienne or Raimundo, but then the latter broke the silence.

"Chase Young," he said, his voice a deadly calm, "Prepare to die."

Kimiko gasped at her friend's harsh words. "Raimundo! How could you say something like that?"

"No," Adrienne said, the smirk still in place, "Let the little boy dream."

That pushed the Wind Dragon over the edge. "You didn't seem to think that I was a stupid little boy when I was protecting you from him!" Raimundo yelled, pointing a finger at Chase, whose, throughout the conversation, smirk had doubled in size.

"You seem to forget, my dear Raimundo, that it was _you_ who asked _me _out, and not the other way around." Adrienne replied coolly.

Kimiko shook with rage. "Leave him alone!" She screamed at the smirking adult, "He doesn't deserve this!"

"That's right." Clay said, also coming to his friend's defense. "He did nothin' to ya."

Adrienne's smirk dwindled a little bit. "He didn't," she said quietly, "except ask for it."

"How did he ask for you to break his heart?" Kimiko asked, still shaking.

There was a slight pause in which Adrienne's smirk left her face to be replaced by a slight frown. "If he didn't want to suffer heart break, then he should have stayed away from someone being sought by Chase Young." She looked back at him, his smirk gone as well, his eyes narrowed. "He asked me, and for that I can't be held responsible for his suffering."

"Yes you can," Kimiko mumbled.

Adrienne turned around to face her. "No, I can't."

Kimiko's eye's glowed. "Yes, you can."

"No, I can't." Adrienne said through gritted teeth.

"You can."

"I can't."

"You can."

"Can't."

"Can!"

"Can't!"

"CAN!"

"CAN'T!"

"STAR HANABI! FIRE!"

"AHHH!" Adrienne threw her hands in front of her as if she was trying to catch the ball of fire that flew at her, but instead of the flames coming into contact with her hand, they stopped in mid-air.

"What the-?" Kimiko exclaimed.

The smirk was back on Adrienne's face as she said in a mocking voice, "Oops. Silly little me, I forgot to tell you that I can actually use my powers now. Oh, how forgetful of me." With a wave of her hand, the fire dissipated. "Anyone else want to have a go?" She asked, looking around at the people gathered. "Clay? Omi?" Her smirk grew. "Raimundo?"

Raimundo clenched his fists and said, "I refuse to fight you."

Adrienne raised an eyebrow. "Oh? And why is that?"

He stood in the same spot for a few seconds before walking over to her. "Because," He said softly as Adrienne stiffened, "The real Adrienne wouldn't be able to resist this." He quickly moved his mouth to hers, much to the surprise of everyone else.

Adrienne's eyes widened in shock before quickly pushing the boy away. "What was that?" She spat, her eyes showing trace amounts of fear. She glanced over her shoulder to look at Chase, who looked ready to kill.

Raimundo stood his ground and looked at Adrienne with sadness. "That was proof. I just proved that you're not the real Adrienne."

"FINE THEN!" Adrienne shouted at him, "I'M NOT THE REAL ADRIENNE! BUT JUST TO LET YOU KNOW, RAIMUNDO, THAT PART OF ME IS DEAD! AND YOU KNOW WHAT ELSE? YOU JUST KILLED HER!" There was a silence that one could cut with a knife after these words where shouted, in which Adrienne began breathing heavily. She turned around and started to walk back to where Chase was. "Chase, let's get out of here." She said tiredly.

"Not until you repay Raimundo his little insult." Chase snarled, not taking his eyes off of the offending boy.

"But, Chase-"

"If you don't, I will." Chase interrupted her before she could say anything.

Adrienne sighed and turned around to face the Wind Dragon, her eyes still tinged with fear. "You will pay for that Raimundo," Adrienne muttered, "Because I will not fight you, either."

Raimundo's face showed relief. "I knew that Adrienne was still in there somewhere," He said happily.

She shook her head in something similar to pity. "You don't understand what I mean," She said, her voice somewhat sad, "I will not fight you because I don't have what it takes to make you pay for that- that _insult_." Adrienne spat the last word with such conviction that everyone except Raimundo flinched. "I believe that Chase can provide us with that service." She looked back at him, waiting of him to come down and defend her honor. He seemed only too happy to, and he was down in a matter of seconds. "I wish you luck, Raimundo," She said looking at him with contempt, "You will need it."

End Chapter 15.

Uh oh... That's not good...


	16. How Long Can You Last?

_How Long Can You Last?_

"Chase," I whispered in his ear.

"Hm?" Chase pulled back a little bit before replying.

"Why didn't you kill him?"

We stood in silence for a moment before Chase sighed and said, "Why? Do you wish I had?"

I shook my head. "No, I was just wondering."

He smirked and pulled me back into him. "Let's keep it that way." I frowned a little at his response, truly curious as to why he wouldn't tell me. "Oh, don't pout," He murmured, his lips brushing mine, "It isn't becoming."

I smiled. "Oh? Then what is?" I asked, playfully batting my eyelashes.

"This." He placed his lips back on mine, causing me to remember the kiss that had almost gotten Raimundo killed.

_Chase stepped forward, his hands clenched into angry fists. Raimundo, his face contorted with sadness and fear, moved into a fighting stance. Chase was about to move in for the kill when Kimiko ran in front of the boy, causing Chase to stop._

_"__If you want to get to him, then you'll have to go through me!" She cried, her arms held protectively in front of the Wind Dragon. _

_Chase stood rigidly as Clay stepped forward as well. "That goes for me, too." He said defiantly._

_Omi walked forward and stood by his leader. "Chase Young," he said, his eyes boring into the immortals, "Prepare for a most humiliating defeat."_

I opened my eyes and looked at Chase as he pulled away once again. "Is there something wrong?" he asked, his eyes glinting in annoyance.

I shook my head. "No," I said quietly, "I was just thinking about earlier today."

He smirked as a finger slid down my check. "Thinking again? How I hate it when you do that. It distracts you."

I smirked as well and put both of my hands on his face. "Well now you have my full attention." This time I closed the gap between us, only to have him take control again.

_Chase stood for a moment, observing the other Monks as they stood in front of Raimundo. For a moment, there was a tense silence, but that was broken by Chase's laughter. "Very well," He said, his eyes glinting. "Adrienne!" I stepped forward when he called my name. "Take care of them."_

_"__It would be my pleasure." I said, smirking. I put my arms out straight in front of me and then quickly moved them so that they were in the air above me. The three Monks were now floating in the air above their friend, completely helpless._

_"__Adrienne!" Kimiko called, desperation in her voice. "Please, put us down! Let us help Raimundo!"_

_I looked away from her, unable to look at the tears that were now falling down her face._

My hands moved to the back of Chase's head, holding him in place, desperately trying to push the image of Kimiko's tear stained face out of my head, but to no avail. The picture still remained.

_Chase moved in on Raimundo, whose face reflected the grimness of the situation. His hands where in a position that would protect his face, but he made no move to prepare for the attack. He just stood there, waiting for Chase to make the first move. He did by punching him in the gut, causing him to double over in pain as Chase kicked the back of his knees, making him crumple to the ground. Chase kicked him repeatedly, making him roll on the ground, looking for someway to escape._

_"__Raimundo!" Kimiko cried, "Raimundo, fight back! Come on, just punch him!" But it was no use. Even with the encouragement of his friends Raimundo still would not attack Chase. _

_I looked at the scene with a sickening stomach. Why wouldn't Raimundo just attack? Didn't he know that Chase could and would kill him? I had the sudden urge to call out and tell Chase to stop, but I then remembered the last time I had took the blame for Raimundo, and quickly controlled my raging emotions. _

_"RAIMUNDO!" Kimiko screamed, tears falling to the ground so rapidly that it was like rain. At this point I was on the verge of tears as well. I looked away, not wanting to see what my lover was doing to the boy._

I suddenly pulled away from Chase, because for the first time in my stay there I didn't want to kiss him anymore.

"What is it?" He asked slightly aggravated.

"I-I just want to get some sleep," I lied, looking away from his face, unable to look into his piercing yellow eyes. "I'm pretty tired after today."

He gave a small growl before pulling away completely. "Fine," he muttered, turning away from me. "Go."

I walked quickly out of the Throne room, not intending to go to sleep.

Chase listened as Adrienne walked away, but made no movement until her footsteps had died away. He let out an angry roar before slamming his fist into a near by wall. "What is wrong with her?" He fumed, turning and looking at the spot where they had been kissing passionately moments before. "How could she still have feelings for Raimundo? I have given her every thing she could possibly want! And still, she refuses to let go of that stupid little boy!" He paused in his rant and his eyes widened in something close to shock. "Why does this bother me so much?" He asked himself, stomping over to his throne and throwing himself upon it. "I should be far more concerned by other matters, not the fact that she loves another!" Then, reutilization dawned on him. He had _feelings_ for the girl who he sometimes called, "Zhen." He knew very well what the name meant, but he just assumed that he had called her that for her powers, not because he- he _loved_ her.

Chase shook his head, trying to get rid of the thought. He did _not_ love her. It wasn't physically possible. He had sold his soul so he obviously had no feelings that were so _good_ and _pure_. Yet he couldn't shake the feeling that had settled in on his mind, _You love Adrienne! You love Adrienne!_ He couldn't take it. He stood up and let out a howl before he threw a ball of energy at the wall, causing a hole to form there. "I can't love!" He yelled at himself, "And there are no exceptions to that rule! Not even if they're as beautiful, smart and powerful as Adrienne is!"

End Chapter 16.

OoO. This is taking an interesting turn. Muhahaha! This is a cliffhanger, isn't it? Well, isn't that nice? Hmhmhmhmhmhm…

-AML-


	17. A Changing Tide

A Changing Tide

As I stared at the ceiling that night after I had left Chase, I thought about all of the things that had led up to this moment. I thought about why I had not protected Raimundo and why Kimiko's tears had hurt me so. Was she crying because she loved him, or because they were friends? And why wouldn't Raimundo protect himself?

"Come on! There has to be a reason for all of this!" I exclaimed, rolling onto my side and staring into the darkness. My mind whirled for an answer, but none seemed reasonable. Was it possible that Raimundo had momentarily left his body? No, that made no sense at all. That he liked pain? But, if he did, why would he fight at all? "Argh! Why, Raimundo, why?"

I stood up from the bed and walked over to the door. "Maybe I should meditate on it." I opened the door and walked slowly down the hall to keep myself from making too much noise just in case Chase was still awake. I didn't want a confrontation with him right now. I reached the meditation hall door to find it slightly ajar, a sliver of light illuminating a patch of floor. I cautiously peeked around it to see who or what was inside. It was only Chase, but my insides still churned at the sight of him. I was about to turn around and leave, but the back of my legs came into contact with something hard and furry. I turned my head to see a male lion staring up at me, his eyes alight with malice. I let out a terrified squeak and stumbled forward into the room, cursing my terrible luck.

"What are you doing here, Adrienne?" Chase asked coolly, not becoming unfocused from his meditation.

I cleared my throat nervously. "Well, Chase, I was having trouble sleeping, so I decided to come in here and meditate," I stated, keeping my gaze to the floor. "But if you don't want me in here, then I can leave." I added quickly. He didn't say anything, so I turned around to leave.

"Why did you leave earlier?" I froze, silently cursing the question.

"I couldn't stop thinking about what happened earlier today," I sighed, not turning around. "I just needed some time to think about it, to get all of these mixed emotions out."

He said nothing, so I sighed again and turned around.

"Listen, Chase, I'm sorry. I have no idea why this bothers me so much. I don't like Raimundo anymore! At least, I think I don't."

"Well, I suggest you figure it out, and until you do, there will be no more training sessions." He growled.

"Wha- what?" I stammered, completely taken aback. "But, Chase-"

"There is no room for discussion, Adrienne, I have made my decision. Now, I propose that you go make yours."

I stood there for a few seconds, having no clue about what to do. "But, Chase, I made that decision when I came here with you! That's what started this whole mess-" I was cut off by Chase pinning me against a wall and thrusting his face close to mine.

"Well, it's obvious that you didn't think about your choices well enough, because you're still thinking about him." He hissed, his eyes glinting dangerously. "I will not teach a day-dreaming little girl who thinks about her prince charming coming to rescue her when she's supposed to be mastering the art of meditation! It is clear to me now why you can't get this last, most crucial form. It's because you've been to busy sitting there thinking about Raimundo! Well, if you know what's good for you then you'll stop!"

Tears streamed down my face as a gaped at him. He was accusing me of thinking about a sixteen year old boy! "No, Chase," I whispered, "I'm not thinking about Raimundo. How could I when I'm here with you?"

Chase laughed coldly. "If you could think about me while in his presence then you can think of him while in mine."

"You where going into my head forcefully, Chase! I couldn't help but dream of you." I cried, trying to shake him off of me.

"We both know that you would have dreamed of me otherwise!" Chase growled, pushing my arms more forcefully against the wall.

I couldn't reply, so I just stood there, bawling, looking anywhere but him. My breath was coming in short gasps and I had lost almost all control over myself. It was taking all I had left not to beg him to forgive me, but that was slowly slipping away.

Chase, sensing my lack of control, said, "Don't deny it, Adrienne. I knew how you felt about me. It's funny how you only want something when you can't have it. But you made an exception for me, maybe you can work out something with Raimundo."

That pushed me over the edge. "Chase, please! I don't want anything to do with him! I swear that if something like that ever happens like that again, then I'll kill him! Please, Chase, please believe me! Please! I'll do anything to prove it to you! Anything you want! Please, please continue to train me! My life would be of even less value if you don't!"

His eyes seemed to shine when I begged him, and his smirk was back in place. He stood in silence for a moment, contemplating whether or not he should do it. "You say you'll do anything to prove to me that you won't think of him any more?"

My heart leapt with joy. He was going to let me stay! "Yes! Anything!"

His smirk became more pronounced. "Go steal all of the Shen Gong Wu from the Xiaolin Vault."

My heart nearly stopped. "Steal all of the Shen Gong Wu? But, I can not fight."

"You said that you would do anything. But if you think that you can not do it-"

"No!" I said quickly, "No, I can do it. And I will."

"Good. Then I suggest that you go." He said, turning around and going to the center of the hall.

"You're not coming with me?" I asked, my insides turning to ice.

"A worthy apprentice should be able to do it alone." He stated, calmly sitting back down on the floor, ready to meditate once more.

I gulped. "Right." I said, turning to leave yet again. This time I managed to get through the door with out being stopped. So I went through the maze of hallways to reach the door that led to the outside world.

End Chapter 17.

Heh heh heh. Yeaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah. Um…. Sorry about leaving you hanging for, like a month and all. Heh heh heh. I was just so caught up in Harry Potter, and kind of, sort of, _stopped writing_. Like, all together. Sooooooooooooooo yeaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah. Oh, and while I'm on a list of things that I'm sorry about, I'm sorry that this chapter's so short, I'm sorry that Chase is being mean, I'm sorry that she likes Raimundo when she's supposed to like Chase, and I'm sorry that I'm failing at life. As Adrienne would say, "Please believe me! Please! I'll do anything to prove it to you! Anything you want! Please, please continue to train me! My life would be of even less value if you don't!" Er, instead of, "Please, please continue to train me," pretend it says, "Please, please continue to read my fanfic," so that way it portrays to me. Yup. Would it help if I said that I loved you all with affection unspeakable?


	18. A Terrible Act

A Terrible Act

How I managed to get to the temple I'll never know. I guess that what I did would be counted as levitation. I mean, it was like I removed the laws of gravity from myself, if only for a few minutes. It was extremely hard to keep myself in the air with all of the thoughts that swam around in my head. Like, 'Are they going to be awake?' And, 'What will Raimundo say?' I shook that thought from my head. I'm not supposed to care about him anymore.

When I did reach the temple, all was quiet. I landed softly in the grass just inside the temple wall. I padded softly towards the clustered buildings, taking care not to make to much noise for fear that it would wake up one of the Monks. I continued my near silent trek to the vault, wondering if they had a guard there. I hoped there wasn't.

Upon reaching the building I found the door closed, much to my dismay. I prayed that it wouldn't creak when I attempted to open it. I reached out a hand and placed it on the handle, turning it slowly. When I heard it click, I flinched, the sound seeming to echo around me.

"Whose there?" Came a harsh voice.

I cursed softly and moved quickly to the side of the building, where there was more cover. I watched with bated breath as an old Monk came out and scoped the area where I had been, only to turn and mutter to himself, "I'm getting to old for this."

A few minutes later I came out of my hiding place to open the door once more. This time when the click came, the old man did not come back. So I pushed the door open slowly and it did not creak. I went carefully inside the hall.

It was oddly light in there due to the skylights. The moon shown in, making it feel like I was in a spot light as I moved to the center of the room. I had been told by Raimundo how to open the vault by playing a certain tune on the wind chimes, so that's what I did. The tiles surrounding the pot in the middle of the room caved in, making steps for me to go down.

I ventured slowly down the stairs, taking care not to step off of the edge and plummet to the bottom of the vault. It was getting herd to see, but I could see well enough to get the Wu out of their shelves. I got them all; the Lunar Locket, the Orb of Tornami, the Sword of the Storm, the Eye of Dashi, the Ring of the Nine Dragons, all came into my possession along with many others. When I had gathered them all I shrunk them down with the Changing Chopsticks and put them in my pocket. I breathed a sigh of relief. I had gotten in without being detected, so getting out would be easy.

I climbed the stairs softly, not caring if I made a little noise. I had gotten what I came for, so I had little reason not to be seen, except for the fact that I couldn't fight. I reached the top of the stairs, the moon still in the same place.

"Adrienne?" I froze, my insides icy. Raimundo stepped into the moonlight. "What are you doing?"

I did not answer, but stood staring at him, wide eyed. What else could I do? Say to him, "Oh, hi Raimundo! I just came to steal all of your Shen Gong Wu so that Chase will continue to train me! See ya later!" Somehow, I don't think that'd go over to well.

"Adrienne," He said softly, "Are you stealing our Shen Gong Wu?"

"Yes, Raimundo. I am." I kept my face impassive. "Is that some sort of problem?"

Raimundo looked heart broken. "But, I thought-"

"Raimundo, just stop." I said, cutting across his words harshly. "Stop. You and I both know that it's not true. I'm not on your side anymore, Raimundo. I don't understand why that is so hard for you to process. I had Chase hurt you! If that's not a clue, than I don't know of any."

"But, Adrienne," He said, taking a step forward. "You loved me! That can't just fade away."

"That's the thing Raimundo! I never loved you!"

There was a heavy silence and Raimundo took a step back. "You- you didn't?" He asked softly.

I shook my head. "No."

"Raimundo!" I started and looked over at the door, now letting more light gush in like the footlights of a stage, announcing the entrance of more characters into the tense scene.

I hissed, shielding my eyes from the light.

"Who is-? Adrienne? What in tarnation is_ she_ doin' here?"

"It looks like she's stealing our Shen Gong Wu!"

"This is most shameful!"

I could just make out the angry silhouettes of the other three monks framed in the doorway. "Get away!" I hissed. "I have Shen Gong Wu and I'm not afraid to use them!"

They didn't back off. "Adrienne, prepare for a most humiliating defeat!" Omi cried, jumping forward.

I sighed. Crap. They wanted to fight. "I think it is you who needs to prepare." I said, showing false courage. "I'm not giving up."

With a war cry, the three came at me full force.

* * *

"Chase," I said softly. "I got the Wu."

Chase looked up from his meditation. "Did you, now?" He asked, clearly amused. "Good, good…."

I limped over to him, pulling the Wu out of my pocket. "They're all here." I said lamely.

Chase opened an eye. "Put them in the vault and get to bed." He said simply, closing his eye again.

I nodded mutely and turned on my heel.

"Oh, and Adrienne?" I stopped but said nothing. "Do be more careful next time. If I hadn't been there to draw the old Monk away you'd be far worse than you are now."

I smiled to myself. Everything is going back to normal.

End Chapter 18.

I did it again, didn't I? I stopped posting…. I'm sorry! DON'T HATE ME!


	19. Old Wounds

Old Wounds

The Monks lay in their cots, all sore, but one more sore than the others. Adrienne hadn't touched Raimundo, but he was still shocked by what she had done to him. It felt to him like she had torn out his heart, stepped on it, and then shoved it back into his chest. Even when the others had constantly that she hadn't felt that way about him, he clung on, but now….

The others began to stir, but Raimundo had no desire to leave his cot. He rolled over, sighing.

"Rai?" Kimiko stepped into his cubicle. "You getting up?"

Raimundo didn't look over. "Tell Master Fung I'm sick," he said.

Kimiko padded softly over to him. "Rai," she said softly, "You need to stop this."

"Stop what?" Raimundo spat acidly. "Hurting?"

Kimiko didn't flinch. "No. You need to stop feeling sorry for your self. I know that you may never stop hurting, Rai. And I know how much it hurts now. But if you have a pity party for yourself, nothing will ever get done." He looked over at her sharply. "We need you, Rai. We need you as our leader. Please, don't leave us alone just because of her. She wasn't worth it."

"Wasn't worth it?" Raimundo asked indignantly. "Where you there the first time we met her? She was innocent then! We could have saved her, Kimiko! We still can!" Raimundo sat up. "If we show her that she's loved-"

"Raimundo!" Kimiko cried shrilly, "Stop it! We can't save her! What will make you understand that?"

"You're the one who doesn't understand, Kimiko!" Raimundo said wildly. "We can win her back! She only went to Chase because he was stalking her! She can come back-"

"When, Rai? When Chase's dead?" Kimiko asked, her temper flaring. "We'd all love to see that day!"

Raimundo said nothing. He could think of nothing to say.

"Come out when you want, Raimundo," Kimiko said coldly. "Or not. If that's what Adrienne wants, right?"

"Stop it!" Raimundo cried, rounding on her. "You don't know what this feels like!"

"I do, Rai! You did the same thing to me!" There was a long pause, in which Kimiko flushed and Raimundo gaped at her.

"I- I did?" Raimundo asked slowly. "Kim, I'm so sorry-"

Kimiko held up her hand. "No, Rai, it's okay." She said.

"No," He said quietly. "It's not." He walked over to Kimiko. "I was being a real jerk." He said softly. "There's nothing that I can do to ever make up the pain I've caused you."

"Rai, no-"

"Kimiko, I-"

"RAIMUNDO! KIMIKO! THE TEMPLE IS UNDER ATTACK!"

Kimiko and Raimundo came crashing back to reality as Omi's cry rang through out the Temple. They looked at each other before running out to find Jack raiding their already empty vault.

"Hey! Where's the Wu?" He asked, popping out of the vault.

"You're a little late, Spicer." Clay growled. "Thanos got it last night."

"Thanos? As in Adrienne Thanos? Ha!" Jack fell over, laughing. "I wish I could have been there!"

The Monks glared at him, reliving the previous night in vivid detail.

_Omi, Clay and Kimiko had all charged forward to attack Adrienne, who stood perfectly still, as if she was afraid to move. When they were about five feet away, they stopped. They couldn't go any further. There was a barrier around Adrienne, stopping them from getting any closer. She smirked._

_"__What's wrong?" She asked softly. "Having problems?"_

_"__Fight us like a true warrior!" Omi cried._

_"__Or can't you?"_

_Adrienne flushed. "Oh, I can." She muttered. "The question is will you all come out alive."_

_She lowered the barrier and ran at the Monks at full speed._

"So, what?" Jack asked. "Did she actually fight you guys?"

"Yeah!" Kimiko exclaimed. "How else would she have gotten away?"

"I don't know. Maybe with that floaty thing she used on you guys." Jack said, shrugging.

_Adrienne knocked Kimiko down with a single kick to the head. Clay came next with a blow to the back of the head. Omi was last. He put up a good fight, hitting her several times, once in the back of her left knee, making her crumble to the ground._

_"__It appears that you have lost, Adrienne Thanos!" Omi cried triumphantly._

_"__No…" Adrienne said softly, "I have only just begun." After a moment, Omi was floating in the air, unable to move. Adrienne left him there, before turning and limping out of the Temple._

_"Adrienne! Wait!" Raimundo called, running after her. But she was gone, flying off into the night like a great bat._

The Monks all scowled at Jack, who was still laughing. "Well, that made my day!" He said, wiping his eyes. "What about you, Panda Pooh?"

Amanda, who had also been there laughing, said, "It made my day too, Jackie!"

Wuya was not amused. "You still didn't get the Shen Gong Wu," She growled.

Jack rolled his eyes. "So what? The Xiaolin losers don't have them either."

Amanda nodded. "It would be nice to have some, though." She said, sighing wistfully.

"Hey!" Jack said, frowning. "We _do_ have some!"

The Monks watched grimly as Jack and Amanda left, bickering the whole way.

End Chapter 19.

Two chapters in one night? Preposterous!


	20. The Great Escape

The Great Escape

I woke up the next morning, my left leg still hurting. I rolled over and checked the digital clock that I had just gotten Chase to get me. Two-thirty. I blinked slowly. Two-thirty? That means that I overslept. I sat up in a flash and groaned. Chase was going to kill me.

I jumped off of the comforter and ran around, looking for suitable clothing. I found a black shirt and a pair of jeans. I stumbled out the door and barreled down the hallway. I burst through door to the Meditation hall, out of breath.

"So, she finally decides to wake up?" Chase asked, not looking up. "It's about time, Adrienne. I was about to send in one of the cats."

"I'm sorry, Chase." I said breathlessly. "I hadn't meant to."

He didn't say anything.

"So, what are we doing today?" I asked, slightly nervous. For some reason I knew that things were bad.

"I'm not training you." Chase said, standing up. "You disobeyed me."

"What? Chase, I went and did what you told me to! You told me to get the Shen Gong Wu, and I did!"

"But you also said that if Raimundo tried anything on you again, that you would kill him. He's still alive, isn't he, Adrienne?"

I didn't answer.

Chase was before me in a flash. "I asked you a question!" He snarled.

"He- he is." I stammered.

"Our agreement was that you were to kill him! So either you destroy him or you get out!" Chase bellowed.

"Fine! I'll leave!" I yelled. There was a shocked silence as my words sunk in. My heart began to pound, and Chase looked murderous.

"What did you say?" He asked, his voice deadly calm.

"I- I said that I was leaving." I stuttered. "And that's what I intend to do." I turned around and ran as fast I could down the hall to my room. I burst through the door and began to gather some clothes together. I looked wildly around for something to put them in, and, finding nothing, I abandoned the idea of being able to take anything with me. I turned to run out of my room again, to find myself face to face with a very angry Chase. I gasped and backed up.

"You aren't going anywhere." He growled, stepping forward. I took another step back. "You are going to stay here until you gather your pathetic courage and kill that stupid little boy!"

I gritted my teeth and clenched my fists. "No!" I screamed. "You told me to leave, and that's what I'm going to do!"

"I gave you a choice!" Chase hissed back.

"Not much of a choice if I can't choose!" I growled back.

"How _dare_ you?" Chase seethed. "You wench!"

I backed up a little more, the venom in Chase's voice scaring me. I gasped, tripping over a pile of clothes. I landed on the stone floor hard. He loomed over me.

"You will never leave this place!" Chase bellowed, his eyes narrow slits. "Never!"

I sat on the floor, terrified and angry, looking around for something that could get me off of the floor. My eyes came to rest on the bed. Something in my brain clicked.

Concentrate, concentrate… 

I focused on the bed, envisioning it floating in the air. It twitched, before slowly leaving the ground.

"What are you doing?" Chase snarled.

I didn't answer, but continued to concentrate.

Chase's eyes glinted. "What are you doing?" He practically screamed.

The bed was now five feet off of the ground. I breathed for a second before I sent it hurling at Chase.

There was a sickening crack as wood came into contact with the stone wall. I looked over, and my heart leapt. Chase was trapped between the bed and the wall!

"ADRIENNE!" Chase bellowed like an angry bull, "RELEASE ME THIS INSTANT!"

I looked at him, a true smile playing on my lips. "I don't think that I can do that." I said quietly. I looked around the room for something to take with me. I saw a necklace that used to be my mother's, but I had inherited it when she passed. It had a silver chain and a large emerald; our birthstone. I picked it up and stared at it. How had it gotten there? I don't remember bringing it with me….

I unclasped it and put it around my neck. I turned to look at Chase again, but he was gone. My heart stopped. _Aw crap…_

I ran out the door as fast as I could, my legs aching from the strain, trying to make it out the door before anything else could go wrong. I pounded through the throne room, pumping my arms like I used to in gym class, not wanting to lag behind the others and go through the taunting.

I skidded to a halt in the entrance hall, my mouth falling open. Hundreds of thousands of big cats were standing, sitting or lounging in there.

_Chase must have warned them to keep a look out for us! _ My brain gasped. _I KNEW we should have hurried up!_

"Shut up," I muttered. "I don't see him here…. He must be looking for me…."

_Or he could be right behind us!_ I spun around wildly. There was no one there. _Made you look!_

I rolled my eyes and turned back around. "What can we do to get out?" I asked quietly.

_I__ don't know! I've been hibernating for the past couple of months!_

I looked around again. "Hmm…. Maybe I could turn invisible…."

_Is that even possible?_

"I don't know…. I'm going to try." I thought hard about being able to leave unseen. Suddenly, there was a loud explosion from somewhere in the room. The cats looked around wildly.

_Way to go, Slick. Now we're going to get caught for sure. Now there's one thing left to do._

"And that would be?"

_RUN!_

I took off down the stairs, hurtling past the now angry big cats. Some nipped at my heels as I practically flew by them. How I managed to get by all of them I may never know.

But when I reached the door, I had to come to a halt again. Chase was standing there, his hands on his hips and a scowl on his face.

_I knew you shouldn't of tried to turn invisible…_

"What did I tell you, Adrienne?" Chase asked quietly. "You can't leave."

"Says you!" I hissed. "There is no way you're keeping me here!"

Moving quickly, Chase grabbed my right arm and twisted it behind my back, forcing me to my knees. I gasped in pain, tears coming to my eyes.

"Get off!" I shouted. "Just let me go!"

"Never!" He hissed. "After all that work I did to get you, I'm never letting you go!"

He twisted harder. A tear slid down my cheek.

"Chase!" I gasped. "You're hurting me!"

His grip didn't lessen. "Say you're not leaving." He hissed in my ear.

"N-no!" I breathed.

"Say it!"

"I wont!" I struggled to get my arm away from him.

He tightened his grip. "I will rip your arm off!" he growled.

I stopped struggling. "Look at what you've become, Chase." I said softly. "Hurting those you love."

"I don't love you!" Chase snarled, twisting harder.

I gasped, slightly from the pain and slightly from this new discovery. "You liar!" I hissed. "You couldn't do all of those things to me if you didn't love me!"

"You want to bet?" Chase asked. Letting my arm go, he spun me around and pushed his lips fiercely against mine. I grunted in relief as my arm came back to my side. Chase lifted me up roughly, and shoved me against the nearest wall. He bit my bottom lip hard. I gasped as the sensitive flesh tore under his razor sharp fangs, blood spurting into his mouth.

He pulled away and spat my blood on the floor. I reached my hand up and touched the broken skin, wincing at the twinge of skin on skin contact. When I drew my hand away from my mouth, I saw the dark red pool form in my palm.

"If I loved you, do you think that I would hurt you?" Chase asked, turning around. "Use your common sense, Adrienne. Did I ever say that I loved you? I was using you! You were my toy, my plaything! And now that you know, I'm done with you. That makes you a common whore!"

I started to breath harder. "You- you BASTARD!" I screamed, tears streaming down my face. I launched myself at him, not caring that I could barley defend myself. I wanted to see him in pain, immense pain….

I found myself pinned to the wall yet again, with him pinning my arms to my sides, his face free from expression.

"How can you stand there and look at me? You've been messing with my emotions for the past couple of months and all you can do is stand here calmly?"

Chase blinked slowly. "You are going to go back to your room, and you're going to stay there until further notice." His voice was tired.

"No." I breathed. "I'm not staying here with you." I closed my eyes and thought hard about levitating myself and my feet left the ground. Chase's grip on me loosened, and I managed to shake him off. He growled in surprise.

"Get back here!" He hissed, grabbing at me.

I flew up out of reach. "No!" I cried. I looked around hurriedly for any rout of escape. I saw only the door, and I concentrated all of my energy on it, causing me to lower towards the floor. Chase grabbed my leg.

"You're not going anywhere." He hissed, pulling me towards the ground.

I cried out, and suddenly, the door exploded into a great pile of dust and rubble. Chase, hit by a piece of debris, flew back, my leg slipping from his grip. I fell to the floor, most of my energy spent. I knew that I had little time, so I picked my self up and moved as quickly as I could to the door. I only had to climb over pieces of stone, for the cats had been frightened away by the explosion.

I climbed over quickly and hurried to the edge, only just stopping in time as to not fall over the edge. I heard a noise from behind me, and I quickly turned to see a livid Chase Young standing up, a small group of braver Jungle cats surrounding him. I gulped.

"You will never escape, Adrienne." Chase said quietly, stepping forward. I tried to step back, but I found my foot dangling over the edge of the volcano. Chase smirked. "You don't have enough energy to get far," He said. "All I need to is wait until tomorrow and then send out a search party."

I slowly turned around and looked down the side of the mountain. I saw a never-ending mist. "You won't have to wait very long," I said softly. I put both of my feet on the very edge of the steep fall so that my toes were hanging off. Without looking back, I pushed off the edge and fell.

End Chapter 20.

I have a Xiaolin Showdown site! PM me for the link... I must warn you that this site contains spoilers! Thou hast been warned!


	21. Life Amongst Death

Life Amongst Death

Wind whipped my hair back out of my face as I fell, my body spread out flat like I was lying down. My eyes stung as the cold mist separated, allowing me passage to what ever lied at the base of Chase's domain. My clothes flapped around noisily and wind whistled in my ears. I felt the blood on my lips and chin dry. After a while, I began to suspect that there was no land at the bottom, but that theory was soon discouraged. The ground loomed up at me, and I closed my eyes, not wanting to watch anymore.

It was then that I realized that what was in store for me. I was surely about to die. I squeezed my eyes shut, waiting for the impact that would surely break every single bone in my body.

But impact never came. The wind had stopped blowing, and now my ears only tingled from the cold air that lingered around me. My hair fell limply around my face, itching my nose. I slowly opened my eyes, and I saw that I had stopped just inches above the ground. I was shocked into silence for several minutes before I started to laugh. I was alive!

I slowly lowered myself to the ground.

_Well, now we know that we can get away with really stupid stuff like cliff diving!_

I laughed again, at a loss for words. "I saved myself…." I whispered at last. "That is so COOL!" I tried to do a little dance, but my body was to tired. "I should probably get away from here…." I turned towards the forest, which, until now, I had no idea existed. "This should work…." I took a tentative step towards the trees on the edge of the dark, forbidding woods.

_Or maybe you could fly away!_

"I can't fly in my condition! I would surely kill myself."

_Fine, do what you want, but don't say I didn't warn you…_

I started walking, the woods promising me salvation from the world I had just come from.

* * *

Chase ran over to the edge of the volcano, his cat warriors just behind him. He saw Adrienne's red hair flying up behind her and watched as she disappeared into the mist. His heart wrenched. He had just killed his former apprentice, just because he was too proud to admit that he loved her.

"But I don't love her." He assured himself sternly. "She was just a part of my plan, and I'm just upset because I'm losing such a valuable piece." His cat warriors looked up at him, waiting for instructions. "Go down there and find her body." Chase said, turning around. "Bring it to me."

His cat warriors set off down a hidden path by the side of the entrance, walking slowly. They knew that it would take a while for Adrienne to reach the bottom, and they needn't rush because she would just be a lifeless mass when they got there.

Chase walked slowly back into his lair. His mind was troubled, despite what he tried to tell himself. He saw her scared face vividly in his mind, and the image was hard to get rid of. He climbed over the rubble and past the warriors already repairing it. His eyes saw them, but he could not comprehend them. All he could see now was Adrienne, falling off the edge of his lair….

He managed to get to the throne room and sit down on his throne, but he was still trying to force the never-ending slide show of Adrienne's face, which at times was happy, and others content, and others still full of compassion. She had loved him, but he hadn't shown any sort of those feelings for her. He finally gave in and just watched as all of her faces passed by.

"When I get her body, I'll give her a burial." He said to himself. "It may help me get rid of these images."

He sat in silence for a long time, thinking of her, wishing that she was still here.

"Master Chase!"

Chase snapped out of his reverie. "What is it?" He asked, irritated.

"The girl isn't there!" Came the reply from the Viking warrior.

"What?" Chase snapped.

"She's gone! Her body isn't there!"

* * *

I wandered through the dense foliage, completely lost. "Where in the world am I?" I sighed, sliding down the trunk of a tree, frustrated.

_I told you to fly._

"Shut it." I muttered. "All I want to know is how to get out of here."

Suddenly I heard a loud crunching noise. I froze.

_You could try asking whatever made that noise…_ My mind said, worry evident in it's voice.

"Hello?" I called out softly, against my better judgment.

There was no reply, only the sound of leaves being kicked up.

"Is anyone there?" I asked, slowly standing. I licked my lips apprehensively, the dried blood leaving a coppery taste in my dry mouth. "I-I'm armed." I said this last part more out of fear than common sense.

The noise stopped.

I gathered all of my courage and looked around the tree, somehow aware that that was where the noise originated. What I saw made me gasp.

_It was my mother.  
_

"Mom?" I asked, stepping around the tree to stand in front of her. "Is- is that really you?"

She was wearing a brown cloak, a tear on the right sleeve. It had a hood, but she was wearing it down, allowing me to see her vibrant red hair and brilliant green eyes, which stared at me intently.

"Adrienne," She said quietly, "It's been such a long time."

I moved forward as if in a trance, wanting to embrace her.

"Stop," She said, "You can't touch me."

I stopped. "Why?" I inquired.

"Because I'm dead, Adrienne." She said simply, "I'm more of a mirage than anything else."

"Oh," I sighed, disappointed. "But, if you're dead, than why are you here?"

My mother sighed as well. "It is rather complicated," She said, "But I mostly came here to help you."

"To help me?" I asked, "With what?"

"Getting out of this forest. It is rather large, and you could die in here." My mother said, moving forward. "I don't want you to die yet. I also didn't want you to go with Chase Young, but your father held me back. I wanted to save you, but he said that you needed to make your own decisions. He was pretty agitated with me when I warned the Monks about not letting Chase get a hold of you, but they didn't listen to me, did they?"

I slowly followed my mother, shocked that she had gone through so much trouble to keep me away from Chase. Was he really that bad in my mother's eyes? Well, I guess that I can see where she came from with that….

"Are you listening to me, Adrienne?" I was snapped back to reality by my mother's stern demand.

I smiled sheepishly. "Not exactly." I answered truthfully. "I was just thinking about old times."

My mother sighed. "That's the problem with you. You're always thinking. I laughed when your little 'lover' noticed that. It amused me immensely how it aggravated him so."

"So, you've been watching me this whole time?" I asked stupidly.

My mother turned to me and smiled. "Of course, child. Why wouldn't I?"

I laughed weakly. "I don't know. I'm just so tired." I yawned, stretching slightly. "All of this running away from evil overlords is pretty tiring."

My mother laughed bitterly. "Yes, I guess that it would. I wouldn't know since you're father wasn't plotting to take over the world."

"I get it, mom. I know that it was stupid of me to go with Chase-"

"Now, I wouldn't say stupid." Brooke cut in. "I would say foolish."

"Okay, than. It was foolish of me to go with him, but he was harassing me, mom! I couldn't fight him!"

My mother held up her hands. "I know, I know." She said, her voice relaying defeat. "I only wish that you could have. Ah, here we are. Our old home town."

We had come to the edge of the forest and were just feet away from the old, worn out town of St. Nicholas. Very few people were out, and those who were clustered around the Drug Store, as they generally were at this time of day, for it was the social hour.

"I had no idea that we were that close to home." I said, astonished.

My mother smirked. "We weren't." She said smugly, "But that is unimportant. What is important is getting you home unnoticed."

"And how, exactly do you suggest we do that?" I asked, watching one of my old neighbors laugh.

"You'll see. Or, maybe, you wont." My mother said cryptically.

I groaned. I hated it when my mother did stuff like this.

* * *

Chase stood in front of the forest, his yellow eyes narrowed in frustration.

"There's not a drop of blood here!" He snarled. "This is impossible! She is supposed to be dead! Where in the world could she of-" He stopped, his keen eyes catching sight of something at the forest's edge. He whisked over and knelt down, his gloved fingers catching a silver chain. "Adrienne's necklace." He said quietly to himself and not his cowering servants. He brought it up to his nose. He rose, clutching the jewel in his fist. "Follow me," He ordered, striding into the woods. "We've got an accomplice to find."

* * *

"Mom," I said, astonished, "You can turn things _invisible_?"

My mother laughed. "It's one of the perks of being an angel." She said. "Now get home. As soon as you do the effect will wear off."

I felt my smile fade. "Aren't you coming with me?" I asked, looking at her sad smile.

"This is as far as I can take you." She said, bowing her head. "I must go back to heaven. You're father will be looking for me."

I sighed before mumbling, "Okay." I looked up to say more, but she had already gone. I sighed and started walking towards my home.

* * *

Chase was running leisurely through the thick trees, following the scent of his prey. His cats were just behind him, their speed matching his own. Within minutes, the hunting party had reached the village, where Adrienne's scent was lost with the other town members. Chase swore quietly.

"Where could she have gone?" He asked, his evil eyes roaming over the villagers. "Where could she have gone in…? Russia…." His scowl turned to a smirk and he turned about. "Whoever finds the College of St. Nicholas shall receive his freedom." He announced.

The cats dispersed quickly, leaving their Master to stand and smirk.

* * *

The way to my home was a long one, but I made it there within the hour. Just as my mother said, as soon as I stepped across the threshold, my hand appeared in front of my eyes. I turned to the mirror in the front hall, making sure that I could see all of myself. To my relief, I was intact and visible. I stood and let the smells of home wash over me.

It was refreshing to be back in the house that I had lived in for so many years. The hallway was still the same; the stairs in front of you, with the dining room to your left and the sitting room to your right. I moved into the sitting room to sit down on a couch.

Suddenly, there was a huge boom from outside. I rushed over to a window and looked out. There was a mushroom cloud coming from a couple miles away. My insides froze.

_Chase…_

I rushed back out the door.

* * *

"Master! I've found it!" Chase's eyes snapped open and he looked at the warrior now kneeling in front of him. He remembered the time he had defeated this one. It had been five hundred years ago. He was a new one, not really worthy of freedom, but Chase's word was law. So, he told him to rise. The young warrior rose eagerly.

"Take me to the place and you shall receive your reward." Chase said smoothly.

The man scuttled through the fallen leaves, ready to show Young the school. When they arrived, he said, "This is it, Master Young."

Chase smirked. "And this is your reward." He quickly transformed into his dragon form and lunged forward, biting his victim in the neck. The man screamed and began to twist around, trying to brake free from the vice like grip of the Heylin Master. He struggles became weaker and weaker, and he eventually stopped all together. Chase let the limp body fall out of his grip, relishing the sound of a fluid-less body falling to the ground. Turning around, he saw his other warriors already there, each one seemingly undisturbed by Chase's sudden attack.

"Go inside and find her," Chase said, "Kill anyone who gets in the way."

The warriors all grunted their understanding and took off, some stopping to question the lingering students outside while others ran into the building, ready to break down classroom doors.

Chase, meanwhile, changed back to his human form. Snapping his fingers, a bowl of soup appeared in his hand. He tentatively sipped it. He carefully stepped over the body, not wanting to get his shoes dirty.

"Oh Adrienne," he called softly, "Where are you?"

* * *

_Run faster! You've got to find out what he did this time!_

"I'm- trying- Running-not-easy-" I panted after a half hour of nonstop running. "Chase-didn't-help-in-this-department-"

I had just reached the village when I heard more screams coming from up the road.

_He's at the collage! Oh God, all of those people-_

I ran faster.

* * *

"Master Chase! The girl is not there! We searched every classroom and closet! She's not there!" The warrior flinched away, thinking that this news would anger his master.

Chase smirked, sipping his soup calmly. "Stand back," He said after a moment. The warriors complied quickly. Chase raised his hand slowly from his side, aiming it at the school. Summoning a great bit of strength, he formed a ball of energy on his hand. With a grunt, he let the ball of energy go.

There was a huge explosion. Pieces of debris lay everywhere, some covering the bodies of teachers and students alike, while others lay scattered across the ground.

Chase snapped his fingers and a piece of paper and a pen appeared in his hand. He scribbled down a note. After placing it careful on the ground, he turned and disappeared into the forest.

* * *

Another half hour later I was on the dreadful scene. "Oh, no," I managed to whisper. "Oh, God no…."

The whole building lay in ruin, all of the walls now lay crumpled on the ground, once offering protection now offered nothing. I saw students crushed by huge slabs of concrete, unable to move or call for help. I saw teachers laying in halves scattered across the ground, cut by shards of glass from the window.

I slowly walked through the wreckage, looking down at all of the faces of the dying and the dead. Tears came to my eyes as I saw a familiar person. Tristessa was lying on the ground, her body sprawled around her and her limbs sticking out at odd angles. A tear fell down my cheek, landing on her own. Her eyes fluttered open.

"Thanos?" she asked quietly, her voice raspy, "Is that you?"

I kneeled down. "Tristessa," I murmured, "I'm so sorry."

"For what? This?" she questioned, her eyes misting over, "This isn't your fault. It's those weird people who came in."

"But they were looking for me!" I cried, more tears falling down my cheeks. "It's all my fault!" I looked away from the dying girl, unable to stand watching her die.

I felt a hand on my own. " Thanos," Tristessa said, "Do you believe in destiny?"

I looked down at my hand and saw that she was holding it, her hands so soft, like a baby's. I looked over at her. "Why?" I asked, squeezing her hand lightly.

"Because maybe this is my destiny," she said softly, "To die like this. It may not be what I wanted, but it's what God planned."

"How can you still believe in God? You're dying, Tristessa!" I exclaimed, letting the tears fall freely.

She only smiled, the light fading from her brown eyes.

"No," I whimpered as her hand went limp in mine. "No!" I let her hand fall to the ground as I stood up, my hands clutching my hair as I screamed, "God! Why did you let her die? She was only a kid! She was only a ki-hi-hid!" I fell to my knees, slamming my fists on the ground, great, heaving sobs tearing my body down.

I only looked up when something brushed against my hand. My eyes saw a sheet of paper, so I reached out to pick it up.

_Adrienne,_

_I was very displeased when I couldn't find your rotting _

_corpse at the bottom of my mountain, so I decided to come _

_and find you. I dropped in for a visit at your school, and I'm_

_sorry to say that I found it necessary to put the unhappy _

_place out of your misery. I do hope that you come back_

_to the lair for dinner soon. Who knows, you might even find_

_true love on the way back._

_-Chase_

End Chapter 21.

I put the link for my site in my profile.

Oh yes, As of now I'm going to start a contest. It will be for anyone who thinks that they have a good idea for a later chapter. I will put the rules in my profile as well as here. Okay.

Pairing: It should be Chase/Adrienne or Jack/Amanda, but if you're felling a little freaky you could also do Tristessa/Adrienne, but I don't think that I would add that as part of the story.

Rating: Anything you want it to be!

Deadline: October 30, 2007.

Length: At least five hundred words.

Anyone wishing to compete is eligible! The winner will have their chapter added into the fic and an honorable mention! Weeeeeeeeeeeeeeee! Who knows, I may enter! ; )

-AML-


	22. Hannibal Roy Bean

Hannibal Roy Bean

The day after Adrienne escaped from Chase Young's lair, things were very tense for both of the parties involved. Hardly a creature stirred in Chase's domain, but this was brought about by Chase's inability to control his temper rather than the absence of Adrienne. Chase was in the middle of one of his tantrums when Wuya floated in. She was bored of listening to Jack and Amanda, so she decided to pay him a visit.

"Chase!" she exclaimed as a ball of energy flew past her, "What's going on?"

Chase, who was pacing back and forth, did not look up at Wuya. "My apprentice has run away." He hissed through clenched teeth.

Wuya's mouth fell open. "What?" she asked, awe struck.

"That's right. She just left. I told her to leave." Chase lied, not wanting to let the truth get out.

Wuya perked up. "So you're in need of another partner?"

Chase sighed. "As a matter of fact, yes."

Wuya floated quickly over to him. "I'm available."

"I am aware of that." Chase said. "And I'm willing to let you help me."

"Well," Wuya started, "I'm willing to help you if-"

"I give you your human form." Chase finished, smirking.

"Yes," Wuya said, not surprised. It was common knowledge that she would do almost anything to become human again.

"I will give you back your humanity." Chase said, snapping his fingers. A tiger walked tentatively in, obviously frightened of what his master would do. "Go get me the Serpent's tail and the Reversing Mirror."

The tiger bowed it's head, obviously relieved that it wasn't going to be viciously murdered and bounded off to Chase's stash of Shen Gong Wu.

_Let's see Adrienne defy me now,_ Chase thought, smirking broadly.

* * *

Adrienne was sad, distraught and angry. No, she was far more then angry. She was pissed off, enraged, fuming, irate, furious. She had let so many people die yesterday, all because she didn't want to deal with some sick bastard anymore. In her rebellious state of mind she seemed to have forgotten that the bastard in question was capable of squishing human lives with a snap of his fingers.

"Christ, that man sure as hell knows how to piss me off and make me feel guilty at the same time." she muttered to herself, her back against the half destroyed Calculus wall. "You'd think that I'd be scared about him finding me, but the anger makes it hard to think. Well, now I know how it feels to be manipulated. Damn it, I hate him."

"Well, that makes two of us." Adrienne froze. That wasn't supposed to happen.

"Who's there?" she asked loudly, fear finally overruling anger.

"I'm your new best friend." Out of the rocks overhead flew a big black bird. Adrienne, not at all accustomed to large birds flying out of ceilings, jumped up, the fear not leaving.

"Who are you and what the hell do you want?" she asked, her voice a several octaves higher then normal.

Off of the bird, (whom looked highly amused,) jumped a tiny red dot. Now, if Adrienne wasn't used to large black birds flying down from the ceiling, then she_defiantly_ wasn't used to strange red dots jumping off of the back of said bird. She jumped and almost screamed, but her days of being trained by Chase Young reminded her that showing weakness in the face of a potential enemy was not a very smart thing to do. So she clamped her mouth shut and just stared at it, her eyes popping madly.

"There's no need to be afraid," the red dot said, "I'm just here to offer yeh a solution to yer problems."

"But- who are you?" Adrienne asked, dazed by this sudden, seemingly random burst of information.

"My name is Hannibal." The dot said.

Adrienne's jaw dropped. "Hannibal Roy Bean?" she asked, awestruck.

The bean smirked.

* * *

"New Wu alert! Get off your lazy tails and come on! Let's move, move, move!"

The Monks were immediately at attention as Dojo slithered around the temple, scroll in hand.

"Well, what is it?" Clay asked, waving a piece of half-eaten chicken at the scroll.

"It's called The Wine of the Immortals," Dojo proclaimed mysteriously, opening up said scroll. "It was inspired by the Greeks."

"Well, what does it do?" Raimundo asked dryly. Kimiko looked over at him, concern evident in her eyes.

"It basically makes the user impervious to attacks of any sort for a short period of time," the dragon answered briskly, "Very useful when in battle against cheaters."

"Oh yes, that sounds most helpful!" Omi cried triumphantly, "Now let us go while it is still good to do so!"

"Don't you mean 'go while the gettin is good'?" Clay asked, scratching his head.

"That is what I said." Omi replied as Dojo super-sized.

"Okay, whatever you say, little guy." Kimiko said, rolling her eyes and hopping on Dojo. The others followed suit and soon they were off.

* * *

"A new Shen Gong Wu has just reviled itself!" the new fleshy Wuya cried, her green eyes flashing madly. "Ah! It's The Wine of the Immortals!" She looked over at Chase, hoping that he would allow her to go.

Chase smirked. "Perfect. Let's go, Wuya."

The witch was ecstatic.

* * *

"So, it's a deal then?" Adrienne asked, "I get you Shen Gong Wu for you in exchange for this soup that first made Chase immortal?"

"That is what I agreed too," the bean confirmed.

"Good," Adrienne said, slightly relived. "Now all I need is a Shen Gong Wu to activate."

Suddenly, the bird flew back down and landed next to Hannibal. It leaned its beak down, almost as if it was speaking to him.

"There's no need to wait," the bean smiled, "One just went active."

* * *

And so, all three parties set out to get this Shen Gong Wu.

End Chapter 22.

I'm baaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaack! Again….

Well, it's a short Chapter, but yeah…. Please don't send ninjas to kill me!


	23. A Kiss, a Fight and Realizat

Chapter 23: A Kiss, a Fight and Realizations

"Jackie! Come on! There's a new Wu!"

Jack was asleep on his worktable when he found Amanda's shrill voice in his ear. He snorted and sat up quickly.

"Whatsamatter?" he asked, sleep still fogging his mind.

"There's a new Wu! Oh, and Wuya's gone." Amanda turned around and walked over to the waffle iron she had set up when she first moved in to Jack's place. She didn't like leaving the dark basement unless Jack went with her, and Jack only left when there was a new Wu to get.

Jack stood up. "Wuya's gone?" he asked, confused.

Amanda nodded. "Yeah. I woke up this morning and couldn't find her anywhere." She shrugged, taking out two waffles. "Now hurry up and eat. We've gotta go if we want this Wu."

Jack stumbled over and took a plate and fork. He began devouring the waffle like a ravenous wolf.

"Slow down or you'll choke!" Amanda cried, pulling his plate away.

"Aw! Come on, Amanda!" Jack whined, "We've gotta go!"

Amanda sighed and gave him his plate back. "Fine, but hurry up! I don't want to be late and just watch the showdown. I want to be in this one."

Jack rolled his eyes. "Yeah, yeah…."

* * *

In the center of a Canadian town there was a man. This man was of average build for his age; he was five feet seven inches tall and weighed two hundred thirty pounds. He was shouting at a child who walked to close to his cart, which was selling wine. All of his wine "is the best in all of Canada!" he said. He had new wine and old wine, white wine and red wine, all of the average things that there could be for wine. 

So he was very surprised when he got a visitor who looked very rich. "Ah, tu aime vin, monsieur? Puisque je prends le meilleur vin en vil-" He gagged when a hand went around his neck.

"Get the bottle, Wuya." Chase Young ordered, tightening his grip on the struggling man.

Wuya came out from behind him. "Right," she said. She began rummaging through the bottles.

"Well, well, well. Look what the cat coughed up." Both Wuya and Chase's heads turned to see Hannibal Roy Bean and Adrienne Thanos, who was standing rather rigidly.

Chase's eyes glinted maliciously. "Hello, Adrienne," he smirked, dropping the man. He scuttled away, clutching his neck.

Adrienne felt a tremor of fear rip through her body. _Okay, now I'm afraid._

"Chase," she said smoothly.

"Wuya," Hannibal said curtly.

"Hannibal," Wuya spat venomously.

"So, Adrienne," Chase said casually, "You decided to show your pitiful face even after I sent you away. How amusing."

Adrienne almost gaped at him. "What the hell are you talking about?" she sputtered, "I left! You didn't kick me out!"

Chase raised an eyebrow. "Really, now?" he asked, amused. "Are you sure your little killing spree didn't wipe out your memory?"

"I didn't kill those people!" Adrienne shrilled, "That was you!"

"Now, why would I kill all of those people?" Chase asked coolly, "I'm not the one who had problems with them. You, on the other hand-"

"SHUT UP!" Adrienne yelled, tears stinging her eyes.

"You leave my partner alone, Chase." Hannibal snarled, clearly angered.

"Don't forget that she used to be my apprentice, Bean." Chase shot back icily. "She might do the same to you as she did me."

"Which would be?" Hannibal asked.

"She will lie to you and pine after people on the opposing side." Chase said, crossing his arms.

Adrienne opened her mouth to speak, but at that moment the Monks landed.

"Wuya has a body?" Omi exclaimed.

"Yes, thanks to a certain evil overlord." Wuya purred.

Riamundo's jaw dropped "But- I thought that Adrienne and Chase-"

Chase laughed. "No, not since she didn't kill you, boy." he said.

The Monks looked over Adrienne, shocked.

Adrienne gritted her teeth and did not make eye contact. "I left." She stated simply.

"Because I told her to." Chase cut in.

"But-" now the Monks were really confused. "We thought that- why would you-?"

"Because she is a no good, filthy whore." Chase said, calmly watching Adrienne.

Adrienne's mouth fell open. "What?" she gasped, "_I'm_ a good no whore? I wasn't the one making out with you for no reason at all!"

Chase shook his head, chuckling. "But I'm not the one who was in love with two people at once."

"I wasn't in love with two people at once!" Adrienne bawled, tears finally staining her face, "I was in love with you! Only you!" There was a long silence after that statement. Raimundo looked crestfallen, Omi confused, Clay grim, Wuya giddy, Kimiko pitiful and Hannibal looked angry.

The silence remained thick for several moments, only the occasional stifled sob from Adrienne meeting the ears of those around. Chase looked smug, knowing that he had just tortured his former apprentice far better then ever before. However, in his black heart there was a small pang of regret, but it was so small that it was easy to ignore or miss. Whichever Chase chose to do is still controversial and therefore some say it did not exist, but for the sake of Adrienne, let's say it did.

Chase stepped forward, smirk still in place. Adrienne's hands covered her face and her blood pounded in her ears, so she did not attempt to retreat. He took several more strides until he reached her. Everyone was standing, watching curiously as he reached his hands up and grabbed hers away from her face.

"What the-" Adrienne squeaked, utterly terrified.

Chase leaned his face in so his breath tickled her lips. "And you still love me, don't you, Zhen?"

Adrienne squeezed her eyes shut, her own breath quickening along with her heart rate.

"Enough of this!" Hannibal exclaimed angrily. "Let her go, Young."

Chase smirked and pulled away, letting her hands drop. "Apologies, Hannibal." He said loud enough for everyone to hear, "I thought that I was doing you a favor."

"By turning my partner into a loon?" Hannibal asked through gritted teeth.

"No," Chase answered coyly, "By proving to you that she is disloyal."

"I AM NOT DISLOYAL!" Adrienne screamed, falling to her knees. "It's you who-"

She was silenced when Chase's hand came into contact with her cheek. "Silence, wench!" he hissed.

Adrienne fell to the ground, clutching her bright red cheek in pain, sobbing.

"Now you leave her alone!" Hannibal said hotly, "Or you wont know what hit ya!"

Chase laughed. "I very much doubt that you would be able to do anything of significance, Bean."

The Monks, who had remained passive, stared, open mouthed at the sobbing Adrienne on the ground, who was now curled up in a ball.

Wuya had long forgotten that she was supposed to be looking for a Shen Gong Wu and was currently watching the exchange between Hannibal and Chase, amusement evident on her face.

It was then that Kimiko noticed that no one was paying attention to them. She stepped on Clay's foot and whispered, "I'm going to go get the Wu." Clay nodded and nudged Riamundo and gave him the message. He looked over at Kimiko and shook his head vigorously. "Why not?" she mouthed at him.

"Because," he mouthed back, "They'll notice."

"Not if I do it-"

"Ha! We got the Wu!" This caught everyone's attention. They looked over to see a triumphant Jack Spicer.

"Yay!" Amanda exclaimed, jumping up and down excitedly. "We actually got a Wu!"

Jack looked over at her. "What's that supposed to mean?" he asked, slightly hurt.

"I just mean that we can finally say that we won a Wu as a team." Amanda said, shrugging.

Adrienne looked at them, still curled up and crying. "Ruuuuuuuuun," she mouthed at them.

Amanda raised an eyebrow at her. "What?" she asked loudly.

Everyone looked back at Adrienne.

"What did you tell them?" Chase growled, standing over her menacingly.

"I d-didn't tell them anything." Adrienne said through her tears.

"Don't lie to me!" Chase snarled, kicking her in the side.

"What did I just tell you?" Hannibal asked Chase angrily.

"AHHHH!" Screamed Jack. Now everyone look over at the boy. Kimiko had tackled him to the ground in an effort to get the Shen Gong Wu, which was now flying through the air. The next moment was complete chaos that resulted in Clay, Wuya, Hannibal and Amanda all grabbed the Wine of the Immortals.

"Hannibal, Wuya and Amanda, I challenge you to a Xiaolin Showdown tag team!"

"TAG TEAM?" Amanda asked, positively thrilled.

"I wager my Fist of Tebigong against your Moby Morpher, your Monkey staff and your Golden Tiger Claws!"

"I accept your challenge!" Wuya cried, "Who will be on what team?"

"Kimiko!"

"Chase!" said Wuya.

"Jack!" Amada announced proudly.

"Adrienne!" snapped Hannibal.

"The game is Chasm!" Clay exclaimed, "Last team standing out of two rounds wins!"

"LET'S GO, XIAOLIN SHOWDOWN!"

The whole world trembled. All of those present were knocked off balance, some falling over and others catching themselves. The earth parted, separating the teams from each other in this manner: Xiaolin V.S. Chase and Wuya and Jack and Amanda V.S. Hannibal and Adrienne.

Two rickety, wooden bridges formed across the gorge in front of said team pairings. Adrienne stepped forward and looked down into the seemingly bottomless pit.

"GONG YI TEMPI!"

"Moby Morpher!" Hannibal cried, growing in size. He started across the bridge just as Jack did.

Adrienne, unable to concentrate on her own match, turned to watch the competition between The Monks, Chase and Wuya.

Wuya had decided to go first. She was stepping carelessly towards Clay, who was barred and ready to attack. Wuya looked over the edge of the bridge lazily as Clay charged at her. She looked up at him and smiled wickedly. The next event took place so quickly that Adrienne could barely see what happened. Obviously whatever Wuya had planned didn't go quite as well as she had hoped, though part of it went well. She had succeeded in knocking Clay off, but Clay had taken her with him.

As the Witch's anguished cries faded, Kimiko ran onto the bridge, letting out a cry of her own. Chase, however, remained passive and stood on his end, his eyes closed. Adrienne's heart sank; this obviously wouldn't end well.

Meanwhile, Jack had been eliminated. Hannibal was making his way over to the other side of the bridge, but Amanda met him half way.

"MONKEY STAFF!" she cried. Her features quickly morphed into that of her Primate ancestors, and her speed and dexterity increased. She was very easily ably to outmaneuver the Bean and, within several minutes, sent him tumbling to the dark abyss.

"ADRIENNE!" Hannibal yelled.

Adrienne looked over after watching Kimiko be thrown into the pit to see Amanda barreling at her. Her eyes grew wide and she put her hands in front of her face. There was a shriek and Adrienne looked up.

Apparently, Adrienne had subconsciously put up a force field, and Amanda, not knowing that she had put one up, had run into it. Upon impact the monkey staff had been knocked out of her hands and been flung into the darkness below. She was now leaning over the edge reaching for it.

Adrienne walked over to her carefully, not wanting to disturb the wood. The bridge swayed with her steps, but Amanda didn't notice. She was hanging rather limply, shaking as if afraid.

Closer to the edge, Adrienne took a rather perilous step. The bridge leaned in the opposite direction, nearly toppling her over. She threw out her arms, catching herself, but the youth wasn't so lucky. She fell over with a scream, her hand catching her from falling to her doom.

"HEELP!" she yowled pitifully.

Adrienne leaned over and grabbed her hand, ready to help her when something clicked.

_She is the enemy! Send her over!_

Adrienne loosed her fingers. Amanda's face contoured in fear.

_Send her over! You can win this with Hannibal!_

Within the next second the only thing keeping the teen from the darkness was the hand of the young adult. Amanda's eyes watered.

_Let her go._

And let her go Adrienne did.

The playing field flashed and changed. Now instead of two bridges there was only one. Adrienne was back on the sidelines and Chase was just across from her. Her stomach fluttered.

"GONG YI TEMPI!"

This startled the woman. They were starting? But Hannibal and Wuya-

Adrienne's heart went into her throat as she realized that she was alone.

Chase smirked at her. "All alone," he said tauntingly as he began to saunter across the bridge.

The woman felt her head begin to pound.

Suddenly, the Heylin Prince stopped. "Come here," he said, his eyes flashing.

Adrienne shook her head quickly; no, she wouldn't go out there where he could easily throw her off, causing her to lose.

"I said," Chase growled, his smirk gone, "Come. Here."

To Adrienne's horror, her feet began moving. She moved quickly towards him, unable to help herself.

_What are you doing? STOP! _ She screamed at herself, but it was too late. She was already in front of Chase.

Smirk back in place, Chase leaned down and put his face in front of hers. "You just can't stay away from me, can you, Zhen?" he whispered. His breath flowing so deliciously over her lips made Adrienne close her eyes. "Look at me." She opened her eyes and stared into his, getting lost. "I always knew that you were weak." He said quietly. "Those romantic fantasies that all of those people have planted in your head are making it so easy for me to-" he paused and breathed deeply and exhaled slowly, making Adrienne shudder, "-Be in control."

Adrienne's lips tingled as she remembered what it was like for his lips to press against hers and she longed for the feeling to return.

Chase smirked and leaned in even further. "Wouldn't you like for those old feelings to return?" he whispered, his lips almost brushing hers. Adrienne's breath caught in her throat. Chase's smirk grew and he pulled back. "If you were to give your soul to me, then perhaps I might consider it."

"What?" Adrienne asked, her mind foggy with desire.

Chase clicked his tongue. "That's the problem with you," he chuckled, "You never could focus."

Adrienne blinked several times. "My soul?" she asked, slightly afraid.

"Trust me," Chase murmured as he leaned back in, "It's not as painful as it sounds."

Adrienne couldn't take it anymore. She needed to kiss him before she went insane. She leaned forward, her lips finally meeting his. He did not pull away; quite on the contrary. He pulled her in, kissing her back passionately.

He wrapped his arms around her, pulling her into him. She melted, her arms against his chest. He turned them ninety degrees before pulling away. "Have a nice fall," he whispered.

Adrienne looked at him in confusion.

He smirked at her, letting her go. She fell, her back not meeting the wood of the bridge like she had assumed. She fell into the darkness, Chase's smirking face fading into nothingness.

End Chapter 23.

Merry Christmas! My gift to you is a quick update!


	24. Are You Selling?

Chapter 24: Are You Selling?

"What the _hell_ was that?" Hannibal asked icily, his yellow teeth gritted in anger. He and Adrienne were back in the ruins of the College of St. Nicholas after returning there after the lost Showdown. Adrienne was sitting hunched over, her forehead resting on her knees. She didn't move or make noise. She just sat, still and dead looking, listening to the bean rant at her.

"I don't understand how you could have lost to him! You have your powers, for God's sake! After all…."

_Am I really that easy to Manipulate?_ Adrienne asked herself. _I thought that was supposed to be my power. Is he using it against me somehow? Or am I just so used to obeying him that I've become addicted to it? Christ, what's wrong with me?_

_No, there's nothing wrong with me. _ She assured herself, _It's him. He is the cause of all of my problems. I never should have gone with him in the first place! I wish that I never picked up that stupid emerald. If only I had an ounce of common sense!_

"…that bastard should have no control over you anymore! Of all the people to fall in love with…."

_I wish that Hannibal would shut up and leave me alone. His constant bitching is really pissing me off. Maybe I should just drink his god damn magic soup and go kill Chase, just so he'll leave me alone._

_How do I know that I can beat him? After all, he does have a great deal of power over me for some unexplainable reason. What if I go and he just captures me again?_

_You won't know until you try_.

_But-_

"Are you even listening to me?"

Adrienne looked up. "What?"

Hannibal narrowed his eyes. "Exactly. Yeh can't even listen to me! I bet that you were thinkin' about him, weren't tcha?"

Adrienne blinked several times. "Him?"

The bean sighed, aggravated. "If you don't start taking this more seriously then I'm gonna-"

"Is it possible for me to sell my soul to Chase?"

* * *

Chase was smirking. He had won. He had gotten the Wine of The Immortals and he had gotten Adrienne back under his control. Life was good.

"Chase! Chase! Where is the Wu?"

Chase flinched. He had nearly forgotten about Wuya in his excitement.

"Why would I tell you that, Witch?" he asked coolly. Even in his excitement educed haze he could not forget that she was untrustworthy.

"Because," Wuya said, not at all taken aback, "We're partners now."

Chase smirked. "I very much doubt that." He said quietly, "I know that as soon as I give you the location of my Shen Gong Wu then you'll disappear with them in seconds flat."

Wuya furrowed her eyebrows and clenched her jaw, clearly trying to hold back an aggravated sigh. She said nothing, but instead turned and stalked out of the room.

Chase's smirk grew a fraction. Now all I need to do is wait. He thought smugly, This shouldn't take long.

* * *

With Hannibal gone Adrienne could think clearly. Of course, he had just given her a verbal lashing for even thinking about going back to Chase, not that she noticed. She had gone back to thinking about that last kiss he had given her. It kept replaying in her mind over and over, and every time it did butterflies started to flutter in her stomach. She was under his power and she knew it.

_Then why am I fighting it so much? If I know that he will always win then why bother?_

She sighed, putting her head in her hands. "I don't get it," she said aloud, "Why am I such a fool? Why couldn't I see that I was trapped? My own bloody mother knows it, the Monks know it, Chase knows it…"

She trailed off, willing herself not to cry from sheer frustration. Damn him! Damn that man for being so sexually appealing!

"I'm not going to give into him." She told herself firmly.

_Not yet, anyway…_

* * *

Two weeks went by without many events. The Monks got some of their Wu back from Chase, sneaking in at night and stealing them. Hannibal left Adrienne to work with Wuya and Wuya did likewise to Chase. Jack and Amanda weren't showing up as often anymore and Adrienne wasn't showing up at all.

A new Shen Gong Wu reviled itself on this day. It was called the Minerdroptol. The Wu's powers consisted of Knocking ones opponent out cold for an hour. All of the parties aforementioned had set out to get it, even Adrienne. She had decided that it was safe to come out and face reality. And, even though her heart pounded in anticipation of seeing Chase again, she was nervous.

_Don't be nervous, be prepared._ She told herself. _We're going to be fine._

It was cold outside. Well, even if it hadn't been winter, it would have been cold, seeing as the Wu was in Antarctica. All groups were bundled up in their warmest winter clothes, although some were heavier then others.

All arrived at the same time. The Wu was located quickly and the Showdown was declared between Wuya, Adrienne, Amanda, Omi and Chase. The game was a silence contest. None of the parties could make a noise and if they did, they would be disqualified.

This was going to be interesting.

End Chapter 24

A/N: UPDATED! YESH!


	25. There Once Was a Love Story

**WARNING: THIS CHAPTER CONTAINS SEXUAL SCENES. IF YOU DO NOT WANT TO READ THEM, THEN SKIP EVERYTHING THAT IS ITALICIZED AFTER THIS MARK:** -** YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED.**

Chapter Twenty Five: There Once Was a Love Story

"Adrienne…" 

A red haired woman rolled over in her sleep, seemingly oblivious to her name being called. She looked ruffled and had dark circles under her eyes.

"Wake up, Adrienne."

She stirred slightly, her torso rising off of the bed and her eyes opening slightly.

"Good morning, sleepy head."

Suddenly, she sat up fully, the top part of the blanket that had covered her torso falling off, reveling naked flesh. With a squeak, she pulled it back up and asked, her voice trembling, "Wh-where am I?"

"Don't you remember?" asked a silky voice from behind her. Breath hit the back of her neck, making her body tense. "You came back here with me after the Showdown."

Adrienne felt her eyes grow wider as the previous day's events returned to her mind.

"Did- did I- did we-"

"Have sex?" Chase finished bluntly, his voice smug, "Yes."

The woman groaned and put her hands over her face. "Christ," she muttered, "What is wrong with me?"

Somehow, his hands found their way to her shoulders and he cooed in her ear, "You make it sound like it was terrible, dear." His voice was laced with a sugary sweetness that made her stomach churn. "And if I remember correctly, you quite enjoyed it."

Adrienne pulled away from him, tears stinging her eyes. "Why can't I remember it?" she asked, her voice soft. "And where the heck are we?"

"To answer your second question," Chase said, still amused, "We are now past third base."

She shot him a scathing look over her shoulder, only to notice that he was unclothed as well. She blushed and stammered, "What about the first question?"

He smirked at her discomfort. "I don't know why you can't remember anything about it. Can you recall the Showdown?"

She nodded slowly. "A little…"

"_LET'S GO! XIAOLIN SHOWDOWN!" Wuya, Adrienne, Amanda, Omi and Chase all stood silently next to each other, not a one daring to make a sound. Immediately after they all got their bearings, Wuya went straight for Adrienne. _

_The red headed young woman nearly let out a squeak of terror as she threw her arms in front of her face. There was a defining clang as the witch bounced off. Although she said nothing, the anger and humiliation was written on her face. As she glared at Adrienne, Omi hit her from behind. Unprepared for the sudden attack, she let out a small yell, disqualifying her from the game._

_The young Monk landed gracefully, a slightly triumphant look on his face. That small smile was wiped away when Amanda came at him from the side with a kick of her own. He dodged it artfully and countered with a well-aimed punch. The silent fight quickly absorbed Adrienne; the grace and power behind every move was amazing to watch._

_She was startled out of her passive state by a pair of hands on her waist. She started and tried to turn around. She knew the feeling that quickly took over her brain- fire spreading across her skin and butterflies taking elegant flight in her stomach. There was only one man who could do that to her. _

_Chase Young's grip on her midriff tightened, a sure sign that she was to stop struggling. She quickly took the hint and froze, her heart rate doing the exact opposite._

_Chase's head moved lower, towards her neck. His mouth covered the sensitive spot, where he could feel her quickened pulse. He smirked against her skin and gently nipped._

_It took all of Adrienne's will power not to groan at the feeling of his mouth on her flesh, but she somehow managed. Her breath followed her pulse, quickening at an alarming speed._

_Chase's hands slowly moved up and came to a rest on her ribcage, the pressure moving with them. Adrienne let her head fall back, her mouth opening and closing as his hands and mouth continued to work their magic. His skilled hands moved in circles on her belly and his lips continued their exploration of her throat. _

_Her undoing was when he took his skilled mouth off of her exposed neck and he blew on the wet skin. The cool air moving back in that quickly on the warm area made her moan. "Chasssse…"_

_The tundra changed back with a flash, but the pair hardly seemed to notice. During their romantic encounter, both Amanda and Omi had stopped to watch the actions of the two older players. Omi had gotten out by saying, "What are they doing?" and Amanda by squealing, "AWWWWW! THAT'S SO CUTE!"_

"_I win," Chase murmured, his lips pressed against her neck again. _

"_Hmm." was all Adrienne could manage._

_Chase chuckled and whispered, "Care to continue this…" he kissed a new place along her windpipe, "Elsewhere, my dear?"_

"_Christ, yes."_

Adrienne shuddered as she felt his hands creep over her skin again. In her revere, she had let the blanket slip off of her shoulders; it was now pooled around her waist, showing off what she had wanted to hide.

"Remember what came next, Zhen?" he breathed against her ear.

She shivered again. "Yes…"

Chase chuckled. "Would you like to…" He moved his hands around to her chest. Adrienne's eyes widened. "Relive the experience?"

She took in a shuddering breath before gasping out, "Not particularly."

The immortal clicked his tongue, disappointed. "Are you sure? I could make all of your troubles disappear. Like I did last night."

_-The pair of warriors appeared in the hall of the citadel in a very similar position as when they left the tundra in Antarctica. Chase spun her around and captured her lips, pressing her body between a wall and his own body._

Adrienne shook her head quickly to negate his statement and to rid her mind of the thought.

_Adrienne's hands were on his chest, the cold armor impairing her exploration. She grunted her displeasure. He chuckled and snapped his fingers, the armor vanishing._

"Stop," she murmured, pulling away from him. "I don't want to remember anymore. I don't know why I ever did. I don't care."

"But you do." Chase chuckled lightly.

_He bit her bottom lip as he had the day she left. Only this time, it was gentle._

Tears started down her cheeks. "No. No, Chase, no." Her voice was soft and vulnerable as the words pushed past her lips. "I wasn't supposed to lose that part of me yet. I was supposed to be married."

Chase's hands snaked back around her waist. "I know what your ideals were," he whispered.

_She pushed his shirt up and let her fingers roam across his muscled stomach. His eyes sparkled as he returned the favor._

"Then why? Then why did you continue on?" Adrienne pulled away, suddenly repulsed.

He lifted his hands up her back and inched towards her chest.

"Because, my pet, you wanted me to."

_"Oh, Chase…" her voice was husky, "Please, take me. I've wanted you for so long."_

_The dark warrior smirked and whispered silkily, "As you wish, Zhen."_

"I would never say anything like that…" Adrienne said, her body shaking.

"Sad, but true." Chase said, not at all remorseful. "I could hardly believe it when those words came out of that dirty little mouth of yours."

_In a flash, they were in Chase's private quarters. He unclasped her bra under her shirt and slowly lifted her shirt above her head._

"This- that- I don't- NO!"

_After her shirt was completely off, he gently pushed her back onto the bed. She laid down willingly and watched as he took off his shirt. She had little time to stare at his chiseled abdomen because he was down upon her faster then the eye could see. She moaned under the kisses he placed on her neck and chest and the explorations of his hands._

"It did happen, Adrienne. And nothing you can say or do will change that."

_Her hands went down to his waistline. "Togliersi i pantaloni." Adrienne murmured._

_"Come volete."_

Adrienne stood up, the blanket falling off. "Chase…" she breathed.

Chase stood up as well, the covers falling off of him as well. Adrienne looked away, unable to look at all of him.

"I- I gotta go." Adrienne grabbed a blanket off of the bed and rushed over to the door. Much to her surprise, Chase didn't stop her.

_He pushed her farther up on the bed and quickly disposed of his pants. Adrienne propped herself up on her elbows as he came over and sat down next to her on the bed. He placed his hand on her stomach and running it over the slightly shaped muscles._

Adrienne ran down the hall, tears streaming down her face and the memories still running vividly through her mind's eye.

_His hand reached the top of her pants and stopped. He looked into her eyes, as if asking for permission. Her glazed eyes urged him on._

Adrienne was so preoccupied she ran into a wall. The blanket fell from her slim form as her body slammed into the hard surface. With a strangled sob, she used her shaking hands for support.

_He unbuttoned the fasten on her jeans and slowly, teasingly, pulled them down her thighs. She shuddered as his cool fingers dragged themselves across her warm flesh._

Her hands clenched into fists and she slid down the wall, her breaths coming in gasps.

_His head lowered down and he placed several opened mouthed kisses along her stomach. Her hands clenched into fists on the blankets._

She made her body as small as possible on the cold stone floor, her eyes squeezing shut as she wept.

_She closed her eyes as he reached the top of her panties, but she quickly opened them again as he slid his hands back up her body._

She rocked back and fourth, trying to calm herself.

_Chase positioned himself back on top of her. Her panties had been removed, as had his boxers._

She let out a halfhearted cry.

_He raised himself slowly off of her and then pushed inside._

Adrienne barely noticed the sound of approaching footsteps in her state of relived pleasure and new pain.

"Adrienne," the woman froze and went silent. "You should stay here. You are in no state to go out into the world. You are to fragile."

She considered his words for a moment. It was true. She was weak and fragile and she knew the prices of going out into the world weak.

She opened one eye to a slit. "F- f- fine." She whispered. "I'll stay."

End Chapter 25


	26. The Evil in Our Hearts

Chapter Twenty-Six: The Evil In Our Hearts

"RAIMUNDO PEDROSA! ARE YOU EVEN LISTENING TO ME?"

The Hispanic youth jumped, startled. "What?" he said, confused.

Kimiko stood next to the window he was staring out of, seething. "I said," she repeated, her teeth gritted, "That we need to find out what Chase and Adrienne are doing. Who knows what they're doing."

Riamundo turned his attention back to the window, his face darker. "Oh."

Kimiko sighed. "Get over it, Rai. She's over you."

Raimundo stood up and said quietly, "I know."

Kimiko mentally slapped her forehead. "Listen, Rai" she said gently, touching his arm, "I didn't mean to yell at you. I'm just as stressed as you are."

Raimundo looked over at his friend and gave her a small smile. "I know. It's hard to accept it though. I never really felt that way before and it felt so good while it lasted."

Kimiko nodded and said softly, "I know that feeling, too."

Their eyes locked and understanding passed between them. Raimundo leaned closer to her and murmured, "Maybe it wasn't Adrienne I was really in love with after all."

Kimiko leaned closer to him and said, "I never had a doubt in my mind who I loved."

Then their lips locked. The whole world seemed to disappear as they stood there, eyes closed and, even though no other parts of their body's touched, the electricity was spreading through their bodies alarmingly fast.

They pulled away after a moment and looked into each other's eyes once more.

"I can see," Raimundo said after a moment, "That this will be the start of something beautiful."

Kimiko blushed a light shade of red. "I can see that, too." She said, giving him a small smile.

They shared another small kiss, unaware that they were being watched.

* * *

Amanda sat at Jack's worktable, head propped up on one hand as the other drummed out a rhythm.

"Bored, bored, bored," she said under her breath in a sing song voice, her eyes half closed.

There was a small buzzing noise and then a small voice called, "Manchurian Musca!"

"Jackie!" Amanda shrilled, leaping up from her seat and engulfing him in a hug. "Did you get the Wu?"

"No!" The teen managed through his girlfriend's bear hug.

Disgusted, Amanda pushed him away and barked, "And why not?"

"Because I got something much better…"

* * *

"So, what you're telling me," Wuya said, her eyes wide, "Is that Kimiko and Raimundo are an item now?"

Jack nodded eagerly. "That's right! I saw it with my own thousand eyes!"

Wuya looked over at Hannibal, who chuckled. "It looks like we need to pay a little visit to the Xiaolin Temple. Wouldn't you agree, Wuya?"

"Ooh! Oooooh! Pick me! PICK ME!" Amanda yelled jumping up and down. "If there's anything my High School taught me, it's how to taunt people!"

Wuya and Hannibal smirked at each other. "Alright, Amanda. You can come."

"Can I?" Jack asked, excited.

Without a moment's hesitation, everyone in the room said, "No."

"Aww! Why?" Jack whined, hanging on Amanda's arm.

"Because, Spicer," Wuya said, rolling her eyes, "You're a pansy."

Jack's lower lip quivered. "Am not!"

Amanda hugged him. "You really are." She said, sympathetically.

"Well, are we going to go or just stand around and talk?" Hannibal asked, a sick smile on his lips and a malicious glint in his eye.

"Let's blow this popsicle stand!" Amanda giggled, skipping after the Witch and the Bean.

"Amanda," The peppy girl stopped in her tracks and turned around to see a defeated Jack Spicer. "You still like me, don't you?"

Amanda's light blue eyes sparkled with tears as she ran back to her roommate. "I still love you, Jackie." she whispered. She gave him a small smile and kissed him on the cheek. "I'll always love you, Jack Spicer, Evil Boy Genius."

Without another word, Amanda turned and ran after her two other companions, leaving Jack with a small smile on his face as he reached his hand up to the place where she kissed him.

"I'll always love you too, Panda." he said softly.

* * *

Chase looked over at the sleeping woman in his bed. She was beautiful in slumber, much like how she was awake. Her light pink lips were parted slightly, revealing white teeth. How she had kept them that white out in the wilderness he may never know, but he didn't care much. Just another thing to revel in, he thought to himself with a smirk.

Her red hair fell in her face, lightly blown away every few seconds by her breath. Her cheeks were pale and tear stained; he noted how, even in her anguish she had beauty, though she wasn't graceful or composed, she was still beautiful. No, he thought, chuckling, she was far from graceful. Her movements were slightly jerky, and though it did irritate him slightly, it added to her character.

He did not know if what he felt was true love, but he did know that he had a very deep caring for this woman. She had this way of making him interested in her without even trying. Ever since he had seen her, he could tell she was different. He didn't sense her powers, no, but he did sense that she was more withdrawn than most girls of her age. Despite all of that she still stood up and argued over who the Wu was to go to.

"The Wu…" He stood up slowly and looked over at her. Had she turned it over to the Monks? Yes, he remembered seeing it in the stash that she stole for him. That was it. The answer to all of her problems. The Wu could put everything back to normal.

He walked quietly over to his chamber door. It opened smoothly and quietly. He looked back to make sure that Adrienne slept on. She did, so he walked out and shut the door with a quiet click behind him. He needed that Shen Gong Wu and he'd get it even if it killed him.

* * *

Adrienne's eyes opened when she heard the lock of the door click. She sat up and looked around, checking to see if she was alone. To her eyes she was, so she pulled the covers back and stood up. As she looked around, her mind wandered to her host.

"He's helping me." she said aloud, her head tilting to the side; the universal sign of confusion. "Why would he want to? He's gotten everything he could possibly want from me. My heart, my soul, my powers, my virginity… What am I missing?"

She sat back down and crossed her arms over her bare chest. "I don't know…" Her mind whirled, searching for an answer. "What in the world does he want from me now?"

She stood back up and walked around the room, collecting her garments. "Only one way to find out." she murmured.

After she got dressed, she walked over to the door and pulled it open. Slipping out into the hallway, she quietly closed the door behind her and padded down the hall.

After a few minutes of searching, she found Chase in the throne room alone. He was looking for something. Curiosity gripped Adrienne's mind, causing her to stand in the doorway and watch. A few moments later, he sighed and turned around empty handed. "The Monks must have it," he said to himself tiredly. "Only one thing to do now." With that, he strode out of the room and into the main hallway. Adrienne softly followed.

* * *

When Chase touched down in the temple, he felt tension in the air. There was something going on; something bad. He smirked and started towards the temple vault.

Adrienne arrived shortly after and, unlike her lover, she couldn't feel the tension. She walked the same path as he and arrived just in time to see several Monks fly past her head. She shrieked and dove out of the way.

"What the hell is going on?" she asked, stumbling out from behind the building. The scene that met her eyes made her jaw drop.

Wuya, Hannibal, Clay and Omi were exchanging blows as Chase, Amanda and Raimundo were going at it in a fierce three-way battle. Master Fung was guarding Kimiko.

Adrienne stepped farther out and looked around. The surrounding area was in disarray. She took a deep breath and yelled, "HEY! WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU ALL FIGHTING FOR?"

Everyone stopped and looked over at her.

"Adrienne?" Chase asked, confusion evident, "I though you were asleep."

"And I thought that you were going to stay with me." Adrienne shot back. Chase didn't say anything. "Now, is someone going to tell me what's going on?"

Kimiko spoke up. "They're trying to kidnap me," she pointed at Wuya and Hannibal, "And Chase is trying to get a Wu."

Adrienne shifted her gaze to Amanda. "Why are you here and why do you," she looked over at Chase again, "Want a Shen Gong Wu?"

"I'm here with them!" Amanda said, pointing at the witch and the bean.

"Okay then…" Adrienne said, rolling her eyes. She returned her gaze to Chase. "And you?"

At first, Chase said nothing. He stood and stared at her, his face blank and his eyes calculating. She couldn't tell weather he was going to tell her his reasons or if she was going to go without an answer. After a few minutes of crawling silence, she feared no reply was going to be made and was surprised when Chase opened his mouth.

"I am here to retrieve the Emerald of Restoration. You remember that, don't you, Adrienne?"

Her memory served her well. "That's the first Wu I ever found, right?" she asked, eyeing Chase thoughtfully.

The Immortal nodded.

"You know something?" Adrienne said, her brow furrowing slightly, "I don't recall ever hearing about what that Wu does."

Chase smirked. "It makes it so a situation that is…let's say, undesirable, can be taken back to the point in time at which it began."

Adrienne's eyebrows now went straight up and met her hairline. "Why do you want that?" she asked, somewhat frightened

Chase was next to her in a flash. "I wanted it for you, my dear. I realize that this whole circumstance is difficult for you even after all these months. Most of this is my fault. I want to change the past for your own happiness."

Adrienne's eyes started to water. "Are you kidding me?" she asked quietly, a watery smile spreading over her face.

"I never kid, Zhen." Chase murmured quietly, "You should know that by know."

Tears started to fall from Adrienne's eyes. "But, what about us? How can you just offer to forget about me after all you've been through? After all I've been through?" Her mind was racing as tears fell like rain.

"Because we won't forget, Zhen. " he whispered in her ear, placing his hand on hers. "We'll be the only ones to remember."

Adrienne closed her eyes.

"We can start a life together. A fresh start without the biases of the Monks or the others. You can just come with me and I can train you properly and not have to be worried about anyone coming to harm you. I would be there to protect you this time. You would be safe from Raimundo's advances and from me. I may not have known this before, Adrienne, but I…" his voice failed him as he looked at the crying young woman infront of him.

"Chase…" she whispered, "I don't want to do that."

Chase slowly withdrew his hand. "You don't." he said softly, his tone not reflecting the sorrow that welled inside of him and threatened to boil over.

The woman shook her head. "No. I want to stay here, with you. I love you."

Joy tore through Chase's mind. She loved him. She loved a monster like him. And he- he loved her, too, he realized. He hadn't always, no, but all that mattered was that he loved her now.

"And I love you, Zhen." He said softly, his voice nearly cracking from the built up emotions.

Their eyes met and Chase leaned in and placed his lips gently on hers. His touch was tender, so tender that Adrienne pulled back and asked, "Are you really Chase Young?"

Chase chuckled and cupped her cheek. "Too tame for you now, my dear?"

"No," she replied, "Just right." She captured his lips with her own, continuing where they left off.

Amanda broke the silence. "I wish Jack was here. I'm going to go see him and tell him how much he means to me for the second time today!" With that, she flew off on her heli-pack without looking back.

Wuya and Hannibal looked at each other, disgusted.

"I'm gonna leave before I throw up," Wuya said, her face contouring to an ugly expression.

"I'm with ya there." Hannibal agreed, his eye twitching. He shrank and jumped on Wuya's shoulder just as she began to levitate.

Kimiko joined Raimundo as he watched them fade into the distance.

"Hey," she said softly.

"Hi," he replied, turning to smile at her.

"Are you going to be okay?" she asked, concern flecked into her voice as she turned to look at Adrienne and Chase.

The Latino nodded. "I'll be fine," he said, also looking at them.

"He's lucky to have her, don't you think?" Kimiko mused, turning back to look at him.

"Not as lucky as I am." Raimundo laughed, pulling her into a hug.

Kimiko giggled and wrapped her arms around him.

Chase pulled away from Adrienne and said, "We should go. We are, after all, unwanted guests here."

Adrienne nodded. "That's true. But we could wait until they kick us out."

Chase chortled. "A little rabble-rouser." he teased. She stuck her tongue out at him. "Come, my love. We have plans to make."

"What plans?" the younger woman asked, frowning.

"Our wedding, of course." Chase said.

"But- but you never proposed." Adrienne said, her frown increasing.

"I don't have a ring," Chase said, sighing, "And I really don't want to humiliate myself."

Adrienne shrugged. "I guess I shouldn't push it. After all, now everyone knows that you have weak, human emotions like love."

"Too right." the Immortal replied.

"Well," the two Heylin Warriors turned to see Raimundo standing there, his arms crossed and a smirk on his face. "Are you two love birds going to get outta here or are we going to have to make you?"

Chase scowled at him. "Never call us that again." He growled, "And we were just leaving."

Adrienne nodded and smiled at Raimundo. "See you later, Rai-bear."

Raimundo laughed. "Later, Scnookie."

Chase glared at both of them before levitating. Adrienne followed him.

The pair flew off into the distance, leaving the temple behind so they could start their new life together. All four of the apprentices watched them, small smiles on their faces.

"Maybe they aren't so evil after all." Kimiko said as they vanished from sight.

"Perhaps," Master Fung said from behind them. "That, young Monks, we may never know. But, no matter how in love they are, there is still evil in their hearts, just as there are evil in all of our hearts. Yes," the old Monk concluded, "The evil in our hearts lives on."

_Fin._


	27. Epilogue

Epilogue

_Epilogue._

The following are a series of dairy entries written by a young Monk named Gethin.

* * *

_April 6, 2008_

Dear Diary,

I have started my journey around the world today. Master Monk Guan thinks I'm ready and that I have a good chance of finding my parents. I don't know why, but when he said it he stared at my hair. It scared me a little bit. He's done that a lot lately…

My first stop is the Xiaolin Temple in China under the supervision of Master Fung. I heard a lot about him from my Master. He sounds like a good man. I wonder if he knew my parents at all.

_April 7, 2008_

Dear Diary,

I have the strangest feeling I'm being watched. I have no idea if it's just my own wits getting the better of me, or if there really is something out there. I'll keep my ears and eyes open for any trouble.

_Later_

Now I know that I'm being watched. I've caught several glimpses of orange and black fur zipping through the undergrowth. It looks to me like the pictures of big cats that were in the books my Master read to me when I was younger. I'm really beginning to panic because I don't know what to do in the event of an attack.

_Later_

Words cannot describe my confusion. I just saw someone out here. It's the middle of the night- approximately one thirty A.M. - and I _swear _that whoever it was had glowing yellow eyes. I can vaguely remember seeing something like this before in my younger days. It frightened me so much that I ran and woke up my Master, but when he came into my room, there was nothing there. He said it must have been a dream, that no one had yellow eyes, but I knew I wasn't dreaming. I always kept my light on after that.

This time when I saw the eyes, I bravely called out, "Who's there?"

There was no reply, so I grabbed a flashlight and pointed it in the person's direction. Once I had gotten a good look at them, I gasped and dropped the light. There, in the florescent beams, was a man in dark bronze armor with long black hair. When I picked the electric torch back off of the ground and shined it back at the spot, the man was gone.

I'm really beginning to worry now. That man looked so familiar…

Maybe that's because he looked just like me.


End file.
